Press Release
FORMER CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION OFFICER SENTENCED FOR MAKING FALSE STATEMENTS
April 4, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney, Southern District of Florida, and Steven J. Mocsary, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), announced that on April 3, 2008, U.S. District Court Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks sentenced defendant Carlos Manuel Garcia to six months' incarceration, followed by three (3) years of supervised release. He was sentenced on four counts of making false statements to ICE/OPR agents during an investigation into alleged abuse of position by Garcia while he was employed as a Customs and Border Protection Officer (CBPO) at the Miami International Airport.
According to statements made in court and other court documents, Garcia violated his position of trust as a CBPO at the Miami International Airport in a number of ways. First, Garcia mutilated his Colombian girlfriend's visa and threatened to use his authority as an officer to deport her and her family. In addition, Garcia referred his girlfriend's mother, who was visiting the United States on a legitimate visa, to secondary inspection without justification and misused sensitive law enforcement databases. Lastly, Garcia attempted to obstruct the OPR internal investigation against him by instructing his girlfriend to lie to the OPR investigators. A thorough investigation by OPR, including tape recorded telephone calls, led to the arrest and conviction of Garcia.
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Office of Professional Responsibility. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Brent Tantillo and Armando Rosquete.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Technical comments about this website can be e-mailed to the Webmaster. PLEASE NOTE: The United States Attorney's Office does not respond to non-technical inquiries made to this website. If you wish to make a request for information, you may contact our office at 305-961-9001, or you may send a written inquiry to the United States Attorney's Office, Southern District of Florida, 99 NE 4th Street, Miami, Fl. 33132.