INTRODUCTION: MATTER OF DEANG, 27 I&N DEC. 57, 64-66On June 16, 2017, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) issued a precedent decision in the Matter of Deang, 27 I&N Dec. 57 (BIA 2017) [PDF version], in which it held that an essential element of an aggravated felony receipt of stolen property offense under section 101(a)(43)(G) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) is that the offender must receive the stolen property with the “knowledge or belief” that it has been stolen. Significantly, this excludes offenses that require proof of a mens rea (mental state) of only a “reason to believe” and not actual knowledge or an actual belief that the property has been stolen from the scope of aggravated felony receipt of stolen property under section 101(a)(43)(G) receipt of stolen property.