Wichita ? Investigators have made the first two arrests in an ongoing, multistate probe into whether a Wichita-based American Indian tribe was recruiting illegal immigrants by promising them tribal membership would protect them.

“There have been complaints in several states of illegal immigrants being recruited to join a nonfederally recognized Indian tribe under the promise that it would keep them from being deported,” U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren said in a news release issued Monday. “Purchasing a membership in an Indian tribe is not a path to U.S. citizenship.”

Mexican nationals Angel Zamora, 38, and Eduviges del Carmen Zamora, 44, were scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday on an indictment charging them with immigration-related offenses.

Both are charged with making a false claim of U.S. citizenship, making a false statement on an application for a Social Security card, making a false statement on a passport application and one count of possessing a false document with intent to defraud the United States.

The indictment does not specifically link them to the government’s investigation of the Kaweah Indian Nation, which is not federally recognized.

But Jim Cross, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, confirmed Monday that those two cases were related to the bigger investigation into complaints about Kaweah membership being sold to illegal immigrants who believe the tribal papers will exempt them from deportation.

Malcolm Webber, one of the Kaweah tribal leaders, declined to talk about the investigation when reached at his Wichita home Monday.

“We are aware of everything. We are the ones that did it. I can’t give you anything,” Webber said before hanging up when contacted by The Associated Press.