Strongsville Woman Among 3 Accused In Illegal Adoption Scheme

STRONGSVILLE, OH — Three women, including a Northeast Ohio resident, are accused of bribing Ugandan officials and defrauding Polish officials to set up illegal adoptions in the U.S.

“The defendants allegedly resorted to bribery and fraud to engage in an international criminal adoption scheme that took children from their home countries in Uganda and Poland without properly determining whether they were actually orphaned. The defendants sought to profit from their alleged criminal activity at the expense of families and vulnerable children,” said Brian C. Rabbitt, Acting Assistant Attorney General.

The three women named in the indictment are:

• Margaret Cole, 73, from Strongsville
• Debra Parris, 68, from Texas
• Dorah Mirembe, 41, from Uganda

The women face charges of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practice Act, committing visa fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and more.

According to the indictment, Parris and Mirembe bribed Ugandan officials to carry out adoptions of children to families in the U.S. Officials did not properly determine if the children were orphaned. Some of the children had to be returned to their birth parents, prosecutors said.

Bribes were paid to social welfare officers in exchange for reports recommending certain children be placed into orphanages, without ensuring the children were actually orphaned, the indictment said. Prosecutors argued additional bribes were paid to Ugandan judges to get court orders placing children in orphanages.

Parris and Mirembe are accused of lying to and concealing information from adoptive parents. Prosecutors said the women submitted false documents to the U.S. Department of State to hide the bribery scheme.

The indictment also accuses Parris and Cole of transferring Polish children out of adoptive homes and into Parris' family's care. Parris' relatives were not eligible for intercountry adoption because they had a criminal arrest record, prosecutors said.

When one of the children was physically abused, the indictment said, Cole and Parris took steps to hide the abuse from accrediting U.S. intercountry adoption agencies and from Polish authorities.

"These three defendants preyed on the emotions of parents, those wanting the best for their child, and those wishing to give what they thought was an orphaned child a family to love,” said Special Agent in Charge Eric Smith of the FBI. “These defendants allegedly lied to both sides of the adoption process, and bribed Ugandan officials who were responsible for the welfare of children. Parents, prospective parents and children were emotionally vested and were heartbroken when they learned of the selfishness and greed in which these three engaged."