Illegal Alien Sentenced to Federal Prison for Passport FraudU.S. Department of JusticeSacramento, CA December 7, 2007 McGregor W. Scott, United States Attorney Eastern District of California Passport Fraud Earns Man 46 Month Trip to Federal Prison United States Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced today that Miguel Angel Garcia, 27, of Michoacan, Mexico was sentenced today by United States District Judge Garland E. Burrell, Jr. to 46 months in prison. The defendant pleaded guilty to passport fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1542, and illegal reentry, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326 before Judge Burrell on September 7, 2007. This case is the product of an extensive investigation by the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), an agency of the Department of State. According to Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Reardon, who prosecuted the case, Judge Burrell, in sentencing the defendant, found that, on February 22, 2007, the defendant submitted a fraudulent application for a United States passport. In his application, Garcia claimed to be a person with the initials J.S. At the time he submitted his application, the defendant provided a California identification card with his picture and the name J.S. Fraud investigators with the Department of State noticed several fraud indicators on the defendant’s passport application. Upon further investigation, DSS agents uncovered information that the defendant had multiple fraudulent identities. At the time of his arrest, the defendant was in possession of the California identification card shown at the time he submitted his fraudulent passport application, as well as a credit card and social security card in the name J.S. The defendant also possessed a second California identification card and ATM cardin the name O.G. Further investigation revealed that the defendant was an alien who had been deported from the United States in 2003 following his conviction in Sacramento County for conspiracy to sell nearly five pounds of methamphetamine. The defendant had not received permission to reenter the country at the time that he was found by investigators from the DSS. In addition to his drug offense, the defendant had several other convictions prior to his deportation, including a conviction for reckless driving with alcohol in 2002. Following his deportation and unlawful return the United States, the defendant was convicted of driving under the influence in 2005. Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Reardon
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