Inside ICE: Volume 4, Issue 1

ICE Cracks Large-Scale Identity Theft Scheme

ICE Assistant Secretary Julie L. Myers, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras, and Cache County (Utah) Attorney N. George Daines announce the arrests resulting from an ongoing worksite enforcement investigation at a Dec. 13 news conference.

ICE Assistant Secretary Julie L. Myers, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras, and Cache County (Utah) Attorney N. George Daines announce the arrests resulting from an ongoing worksite enforcement investigation at a Dec. 13 news conference.

1,297 Swift & Company (Swift) workers were arrested as part of an ongoing worksite enforcement investigation into immigration violations and a massive identity theft scheme that has victimized large numbers of U.S. citizens and lawful U.S. residents.

On Dec. 12, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents executed civil search warrants at six facilities owned by Swift, one one of the nation s largest processors of fresh pork and beef. Agents executed warrants at Swift facilities in Greeley, Col.; Grand Island, Neb.; Cactus, Texas; Hyrum, Utah; Marshalltown, Iowa; and Worthington, Minn.

All of the illegal alien workers were initially apprehended on administrative immigration violations. Of these, 274 have also been charged with criminal violations related to identity theft or other violations, such as re-entry after deportation. Countries of origin of those arrested were Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Peru, Laos, Sudan and Ethiopia; others have yet to be identified. The investigation is ongoing.

Through this investigation, which began in Feb. 2006, ICE and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have identified hundreds of U.S. citizens whose stolen identities have been used by these aliens, that have reported being victimized by this identity theft scheme. ICE and the FTC are working to identify other victims who may be unaware that their identities have been stolen.

The investigation has uncovered criminal organizations around the country that traffic in genuine birth certificates and Social Security cards belonging to U.S. citizens. In recent months, ICE agents have arrested several members of these organizations in Minnesota, Texas, Utah and Puerto Rico. In some cases, these organizations have stolen legitimate identity documents from unwitting U.S. citizens. In other cases, they have purchased these documents from U.S. citizens willing to sell their identities for money, including homeless people and individuals in jail.

ICE agents learned that many of these genuine identity documents were trafficked to locations around the country and sold to illegal aliens who used them to gain employment at Swift. By using valid birth certificates and Social Security cards of U.S. citizens, these illegal aliens were able to thwart the Basic Pilot employment eligibility verification Program (Basic Pilot), a federal program designed to help employers detect unauthorized workers. Swift has used Basic Pilot since 1997.

The illegal aliens arrested Dec. 12 on administrative immigration violations were detained and processed at locations around the country for removal proceedings or immediate return to Mexico. In a limited number of cases where humanitarian or medical concerns were identified, ICE agents used their discretion and provided the alien with a notice to appear in court at a later date.

Those illegal aliens who were charged with federal criminal violations were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending their criminal court proceedings before a federal judge. Those illegal aliens charged in state criminal violations were remanded to the custody of state authorities pending their criminal court proceedings. ICE will seek to remove these individuals from the United States upon the resolution of their criminal charges and associated sentences.

Any U.S. citizens who suspect their identities were stolen in this scheme should report it via the FTC Web site at www.ftc.gov/idtheft or by calling the FTC s hotline at 1-877-ID-THEFT (1-877-438-4338), or by writing to the Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20580.

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