Michael Wei Yueh Liu, a California man, was sentenced Monday to nearly three and a half years in prison for running a massive business that helped Chinese women give birth in the United States. Under U.S. law, those children born in the United States automatically receive U.S. citizenship.

His sentence was less than prosecutors had sought. Federal prosecutors had sought a five-year prison sentence. Liu was convicted in September of conspiracy and money laundering for running the USA Happy Baby confinement center. Phoebe Jing Dong, who he was married to but is believed to have since separated from, was also convicted in the case. Her sentencing decision is expected to come later.

After being sentenced to 41 months in prison, Liu was led out of the courtroom by authorities and taken into custody. He handed his belt and a folder to his lawyer and briefly shook Dong’s hand, who cried.

Federal prosecutors declined to comment immediately after Monday’s hearing.

U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner said his sentencing took into account the defendants’ convictions and certain lenient factors, including Liu’s caregiving duties for his elderly parents and 13-year-old son.

Authorities said that between 2012 and 2015, Phoebe Baby Care helped hundreds of women from China come to the United States to give birth. The couple charged the tourists up to $40,000 for services that included renting apartments during their stay in Southern California and working with overseas entities to teach them what to say during visa interviews and when they arrived at U.S. airports, and to advise them to wear loose clothing to hide their pregnancies.

“The defendants helped his numerous clients defraud U.S. authorities and purchase U.S. citizenship for their children, for tens of thousands of dollars each,” federal prosecutors wrote in court documents. “This crime is serious and must be met with a meaningful sentence to promote respect for the law and hold the defendant accountable.”

Liu Weiyue’s lawyer Kevin Cole previously said his client should face no more than 26 months in prison and asked that he be allowed to serve his sentence at home. Cole said in court documents that Liu Weiyue, 59, is a father of three children. He was born in Taiwan, graduated from a Taiwanese university and served in the Taiwanese military. He has no criminal record and takes care of his parents at home, regularly taking them to medical treatment, bathing them and cooking for them.

“Mr. Liu does not pose a threat to society, and there is no need to deter him with a long prison term,” Cole said.

The case against Liu Weiyue and Dong Jing dates back several years. Federal authorities raided more than a dozen homes across Southern California in 2015 as part of a crackdown on birth tourism operators, and in 2019 charged the couple and more than a dozen others, including a woman who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 months in prison for running a company called You Win USA.

Such businesses have long operated in California and other states, serving clients not only from China but also from Russia and Nigeria, among other places. Visiting the United States while pregnant is not illegal, but lying to U.S. consular and immigration officials about the purpose of your trip on government documents is not.

A key draw for these travelers is the U.S. birthright citizenship system. Many believe that U.S. citizenship can help their children attend college in the United States and provide some kind of future insurance – especially when their American children turn 21 and they themselves can apply for permanent residency.

President-elect Donald Trump has promised to end birthright citizenship once he takes office, but any such effort faces significant legal obstacles.