Twelve indicted by federal grand jury in Idaho on identity theft and immigration violations
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April 17, 2008

Twelve indicted by federal grand jury in Idaho on identity theft and immigration violations

BOISE, Idaho - A federal grand jury has indicted 12 former employees of a Homedale, Idaho, pallet manufacturing company on identity theft charges and other criminal violations as part of an ongoing investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE.)

The 10 men and two women indicted in this case were encountered by ICE agents during a worksite enforcement action at Specialty Inc., Wood Products on April 2, 2008.All are Mexican nationals.

Following are the names, ages and charges against those who were indicted:

Herminio Villa-Gonzalez, 21

  • Possession of counterfeit alien registration card
  • Fraudulent use of Social Security number
  • Aggravated identity theft
  • Improper entry by alien

Isrobel Madrigal-Valdez, 22

  • Same as above

Juan De Dios Benavides-Ayon, 24

  • Same as above

Adan Ortiz-Ruiz, 38

  • Same as above

Jesus Nuno-Coronado, 44

  • Same as above

Ventura Vargas-Ruiz, 21

  • Same as above

Reyes Becerril-Luis, 20

  • Same as above

Elba Machuca-Macias, 37

  • Same as above

Amelia Ramos-Alcala, 27

  • Same as above

Manual Chavez-Elias, 38

  • Fraudulent use of Social Security number
  • Aggravated identity theft
  • Improper entry by alien

Rolando Hurtado-Vega, 33

  • Re-entry after removal

Adulfo Gonzalez-Hernandez, 29

  • Same as above

Five of the defendants, Villa-Gonzalez, Madrigal-Valdez, Benavides-Ayon, Ortiz-Ruiz, and Nuno-Coronado, immediately pleaded guilty and have been deported to Mexico.Trials for the other seven are expected to begin in June.

The defendants face sentences of up to 10 years for possession of counterfeit alien registration cards; five years for misuse of Social Security numbers; two years for identity theft; and six months to a maximum of 20 years for illegal entry or re-entry after deportation.

Since it was created in March 2003, ICE has dramatically enhanced its efforts to combat illegal aliens unlawfully working in the United States.During fiscal year 2007, ICE arrested 863 individuals on criminal charges in worksite investigations, and administratively apprehended another 4,077 illegal workers on immigration violations. These arrests have increased significantly when compared to the 160 criminal arrests and 685 administrative arrests ICE made in fiscal year 2004.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

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