An Arlington-based D.C. National Guard major admitted in federal court that he built a second marriage and immigration story while still legally married to his first wife, prosecutors said. The scheme also allegedly drained about $54,000 in government money through unauthorized travel-card charges, fabricated receipts and bogus vouchers.
According to Daily Voice, Collin L. Welch, 40, pleaded guilty in Washington, D.C., to theft of government money and an immigration-related offense. Prosecutors said Welch began a relationship with a Mongolian woman in 2019 while posted to the U.S. Embassy in Ulaanbaatar, then created a fake divorce decree to persuade her that he was free to marry.
Welch married the woman in Mongolia in 2022, despite remaining legally married to his first wife, prosecutors said. He later brought the woman and her minor daughter to the United States on tourist visas in 2024 and married the woman again in Virginia that October…