The United States has ordered the immediate suspension of the Diversity Visa Lottery (DV1) programme following a deadly shooting allegedly carried out by a green card holder who entered the country through the scheme.
The suspect, Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, a Portuguese national, is accused of carrying out shootings at Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
U.S. authorities said Valente who entered the United States via the diversity visa lottery later obtained permanent residency.
The DV1 programme, also known as the green card lottery, awards up to 50,000 permanent resident visas annually to applicants from countries considered under-represented in US immigration.
Announcing the suspension, US Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, disclosed the decision in a post on her X, linking the suspect’s immigration pathway to renewed security concerns.
She wrote, “The Brown University shooter, Claudio Manuel Neves Valente entered the United States through the diversity lottery immigrant visa program (DV1) in 2017 and was granted a green card. This heinous individual should never have been allowed in our country.
“In 2017, President Trump fought to end this programme, following the devastating NYC truck ramming by an ISIS terrorist, who entered under the DV1 program, and murdered eight people.
“At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS to pause the DV1 programme to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program.”
The decision revived long-standing criticism of the diversity visa system by President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly described it as a security risk and previously sought its abolition during his first term.
