N Miami Mayor Illegal Alien Replaced With Another Criminal Arrested 21 Times
REGINA HILL HAS BEEN ARRESTED 21 TIMES YET WAS BROUGHT IN TO REPLACE THE HAITIAN FRAUD BIANAME
Illegal Alien Joins Local Government; Married in Haiti and Miami Simultaneously
By SyndicatedNews Legal Eagle | SNN.BZ
In a stunning political scandal that has rocked South Florida, the former mayor of North Miami has been unmasked as an illegal immigrant who allegedly used a fake identity, fraudulent marriages, and deceptive practices to obtain U.S. citizenship and hold public office.
Federal authorities are now moving to revoke his citizenship and deport him, with the case drawing national attention amid heightened immigration enforcement under the Trump administration.
The individual at the center of the controversy entered the United States in 1997 under the name Jean Felipe Jeanvier, reportedly using a fraudulent passport at Miami International Airport. An immigration judge issued a deportation order against him in July 2000. He appealed the decision but lost, ultimately agreeing to voluntary departure to his native Haiti. Despite the order, he remained in the country and built a life under multiple aliases, including variations such as Felipe Bename, Philip Bianame, and Felipe Bianame.
Court records detail a complex web of alleged identity fraud and marriage schemes. While in the U.S., he had a child with Sarah Jane Turner, initially contested paternity (later confirmed by testing), and married her—despite reportedly being already married to someone else, raising bigamy concerns. Authorities allege he used fraudulent marriages, including one to a U.S. citizen named Beatrice Gellen, to secure permanent residency. Haitian government records reportedly show inconsistencies, with some marriages and divorces occurring under different names on the same day in 1993. Using the fraudulent marriage to Turner and their child as a basis, he later obtained naturalized U.S. citizenship under his assumed identity.
Armed with this fabricated background, the man entered local politics. He served six years as a North Miami city councilman before being elected mayor in 2019. During his campaign, he focused on community issues such as protecting preserves and local development. He also ran for Miami-Dade County Commissioner in District 2, promising safer streets, economic growth, and solutions to housing shortages. He held the mayor’s office during the COVID-19 pandemic, signing official city documents—including checks—under his assumed name.
The scheme allegedly unraveled through the Historic Fingerprint Enrollment Project, where his fingerprints matched his original identity. The U.S. Department of Justice subsequently filed to revoke his citizenship, citing immigration fraud. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested him. His wife, Sarah Jane Turner, was also detained at the Broward Transitional Center for deportation proceedings; her earlier appeal had been denied in 2002. The couple reportedly has three children together.
Legal experts and commentators have raised serious questions about how the deception went undetected for so long, despite routine background checks for elected officials. The case has sparked discussions about vulnerabilities in immigration vetting, the potential for fraud in obtaining citizenship through marriage, and broader implications for local government accountability. Some observers have pointed to possible additional fraud, such as in city financial documents, and questioned whether the city of North Miami could face liability or lawsuits.
This high-profile case comes as the Trump administration ramps up deportation efforts targeting individuals with serious immigration violations. It echoes other recent incidents involving alleged identity fraud by public figures and underscores ongoing debates about enforcement of immigration laws, even at the local level.
The full details continue to emerge through court proceedings, with federal investigators examining the extent of the alleged years-long scheme. As the story develops, it serves as a stark reminder of the challenges in verifying identities and backgrounds in an era of global migration and digital records.
Note: This article is based on public court records, news reports, and video narration summarized from the source. All allegations are pending legal outcomes, and individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
