A local probe into a supposed day care has kicked off a criminal investigation and a state lawsuit, with reporters on the ground and the Texas attorney general stepping in. The reporting lays out alleged visa sales, strange payroll claims, and a legal response aimed at shutting down what officials say is a sham operation.
Reporter Sara Gonzales’ on-the-ground work is at the center of a complaint that led Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to file suit against Golden Qi Holdings LLC and a man named Yuan Yao, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China. Paxton explicitly cited the Gonzales reporting in a press release as his office moved to address the alleged scheme.
That reporting found multiple businesses being promoted as legitimate employers for the explicit purpose of sponsoring H-1B visas that were then allegedly sold to Chinese nationals. At the site identified as the Allen Infant Care Center, Gonzales found no sign of children and only overgrown weeds where a functioning day care should be operating.
https://x.com/SaraGonzalesTX/status/2054267708632650087
An anonymous source who spoke with Gonzales claimed Yao “sells visas” and said the day care had not been functioning for a long time. The source told Gonzales that Yao sold visas for large sums and then received labor from the buyers “for next to nothing.” “None of these people come from poor homes. These are people who can pay him 20 grand for their visa,” the woman said in the report. “That arrangement is made in China.”
When Gonzales confronted Yao in person, he reportedly hinted he was trying to reopen the business and denied wrongdoing while warning he would call the police if she did not leave the property. Then he drove off in his metallic rose gold BMW. Records Gonzales dug up also show the company took out two Paycheck Protection Program loans, for $51,000 and $54,000, and both loans were later forgiven, even as the behavioral autism program tied to the business appeared dormant.
In interviews about the paperwork, Gonzales flagged how odd the labor claims looked on their face. “The thing that is so curious about this [case] when you go digging in the data and the [Labor Condition Applications] is that you wouldn’t think that a day care center would need, you know, ‘market research analysts’ or ‘supply chain analysts,'” she said. “And yet, this company actually told the United States government that they needed foreign workers to fill those jobs,” the reporting states, casting doubt on whether those job descriptions were legitimate.
Paxton framed the lawsuit as part of a broader effort to defend American workers and the integrity of the visa system. “Let this be a warning to anyone considering trying to scam the H-1B visa program,” he wrote. “I will continue fighting to ensure that the H-1B program serves the interests of Americans, not Chinese nationals, and that those who abuse the program are held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.” “My office will continue to work to stop any foreign national from entering this country unlawfully,” he added, signaling aggressive enforcement.
The developments show how local reporting can prompt state action when paperwork and presence do not match up. State investigators now have to sort claims, documents, and witness statements to determine whether this was a criminal enterprise or a highly questionable series of business filings that exploited federal programs and loopholes.
