A Honolulu wedding business operator has been charged in federal court with immigration fraud for allegedly arranging fake marriages for hostesses working "in the Honolulu karaoke bar industry."

Gwn Ja Kim, owner of Introductions in Paradise Inc., allegedly helped arrange sham marriages for fees in excess of $15,000, according to a sworn affidavit filed in court Friday by FBI Special Agent Gary R. Brown.

Kim was named in a criminal complaint along with co-defendants identified as Grace Jung, Yong Ae Inabnitt and David Chung. None of the defendants could be located for comment yesterday.

Brown said in his affidavit that Kim told a confidential source in surreptitiously tape-recorded sessions that the cost of an arranged marriage "would require $10,000 to start."

Kim further said that immediately following the marriage, to a partner supplied by Kim, the customer could apply for a permanent residency visa card. When the card arrived, usually within four to five months, another $10,000 would be owed, according to Brown's affidavit.

"Two years after that, the (customer) would owe another $10,000, presumably after the (customer) gains United States citizenship through the fraudulent marriage," Brown said in the affidavit.

The witness working with Brown later met with Kim and David Chung, who "had agreed to serve as her husband in the fraudulent marriage," Brown said.

Chung allegedly said he would not live with the witness and that "he did not want to see her other than to do the things necessary to gain her permanent residence status," Brown said.

Chung's girlfriend, Inabnitt, was allegedly part of the scheme and advised Kim on the "trade craft necessary to succeed in a fraudulent marriage — things like opening a bank account, taking pictures that appear to show a personal relationship," Brown said.

The witness eventually met with Kim and Jung in the office of an unidentified attorney July 14 to discuss marriage and immigration issues, according to the criminal complaint.

The attorney spoke only English and Kim, Jung and the witness spoke in Korean, with Jung advising the witness how to answer questions from the attorney.