A Toronto man facing deportation for violating sanctions against Iran has filed a lawsuit against the Canadian government for rejecting his attempt to support his mother’s immigration.
Amin Yousefijam, an Iranian citizen who also goes by Ameen Cohen, filed his case in Federal Court after Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada rejected his sponsorship application.
The case asks the court to overturn the decision on the grounds that it was unfair, but the record makes no mention of the Canada Border Services Agency attempting to deport Yousefijam as a security threat.
The Immigration and Refugee Agency said a decision on his deportation is expected in the coming weeks. Yousefijam now lives in Richmond Hill, Ontario, according to his court records.
He did not respond to requests for comment. The CBSA referred questions about his case to the IRCC, which declined to comment because the matter was before the federal court.
“While we cannot comment on a specific case, in general a permanent resident is not eligible to support a parent if they themselves are ineligible to enter Canada. Individuals may be found ineligible for criminal or security reasons,” a spokesperson said.
Born Amin Riki in Iran, the former Tehran police officer changed his name to Amin Yousefijam before arriving in Canada in 2016, according to the Border Patrol.
He was arrested in Toronto in January 2021 US indictments It alleged he took part in a conspiracy to supply sensitive technology to Iran in violation of economic sanctions.
He was held for 10 months before being extradited to Michigan, where he pleaded guilty. When he was deported back to Ontario, he officially changed his name to Cohen, a nickname he said he chose because it “resonated with me.”
Sentenced due to sanctions, the brothers change their name to Cohen
Arash (left) and Amin Yousefijam, aka Aurash and Ameen Cohen.
Be Brother Arash was also convicted and also changed his name to Cohen and became a dentist under his adopted name. Ontario revoked his dental license in 2024 Global News revealed his past.
In February 2025, the CBSA sent Yousefijam to Immigration and Refugee Services for a deportation hearing on the grounds that his involvement in evading Iranian sanctions made him a threat to national security.
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His actions jeopardize the Canadian government’s policy towards Iran’s authoritarian regime, which leads an “axis of resistance” made up of the terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah, Iraqi militias and Yemeni Houthis, the CBSA argued.
At his hearing, Yousefijam argued that he only pleaded guilty to evading US sanctions because it was the quickest way to resolve the matter. “It was not an admission of guilt,” he emphasized.
According to court documents filed this month and shared with Global News, Yousefijam applied for his mother’s immigrant support on August 18, 2025, six months after his deportation hearing.
His application was rejected because he had not paid the required fees. In his appeal, he alleged that the transaction was not authorized, which he described as a “good faith error.” He represents himself in the case.
Ontario small claims court records obtained by Global News show that in December 2019, the Yousefijam brothers agreed to pay $14,000 to an Iranian woman who had sued them and their mother.
However, they denied the Iranian refugee claimant’s claims that she threatened her with deportation after she demanded they pay them back.
“People are suing each other in small claims court left and right, what’s new?” Arash Yousefijam responded to a question about the case in an email.
Suspected senior regime official denies authority
Amin Yousefijam’s Canadian residency card. He has officially changed his name to Ameen Cohen.
Immigration and Refugee Authority
Yousefijam’s deportation case is one of several dozen cases launched against Iranians as the federal government comes under pressure to prevent members and supporters of the regime from doing so Use Canada as a safe haven.
The CBSA has denied claims it received tips on 700 senior regime officials living in Canada. In fact, 280 tips were received and 174 investigations were initiated.
Most investigations were closed because the individuals in question were either not in Canada or “determined not to be a senior official of the Iranian regime,” the CBSA said.
According to the CBSA, border officials have identified 32 suspected senior members of the Iranian government living in Canada. 23 of them have been or are being sent to the IRB for deportation hearings.
A hearing for one of them, Abbas OmidiContinued on Monday. The CBSA alleges that before coming to Canada, he served as deputy director general in Iran’s Ministry of Industry, Mines and Trade.
But Omidi downplayed his role in the government, arguing that he was simply a technocrat with no decision-making authority. “I was so many levels lower than the minister,” he testified.
After arriving in Canada in March 2022, he worked as an Uber driver and continued to play an advisory role in Iran’s mining industry, although he was never paid, he testified with the help of a Persian interpreter.
Omidi’s case will be resumed on April 10. So far, only a single regime member has been deported under a policy introduced in 2022 in response to Iran’s crackdown on women’s rights protesters.
The presence of former Iranian officials in Canada has become a more pressing issue since pro-government forces killed thousands of protesters in January and the US and Israel went there War against the Islamic Republic in February.
Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca
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