| Former ICE Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Stealing Immigrants' Identities to Spend $190,000 |
| Friday, 16 February 2018 09:40 |
|
Haag writes: "A former top lawyer for Immigration and Customs Enforcement pleaded guilty on Thursday to stealing the identities of seven people in deportation proceedings and buying more than $190,000 in goods under their names, the federal authorities said."
Former ICE Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Stealing Immigrants' Identities to Spend $190,00016 February 18
The former lawyer, Raphael A. Sanchez, used his position as the ICE chief counsel for immigration proceedings in several Western states to gain access to the victims’ personal information in federal databases, including their immigration records. Using those records, Mr. Sanchez created fake Social Security cards, driver’s licenses and utility bills to open credit card and bank accounts in their names, the authorities said. Mr. Sanchez, 44, ran the elaborate scheme, which included his claiming three of the people as dependents on his tax returns, from October 2013 to October 2017, ordering items online and having them shipped to his house. To try to make the purchases appear legitimate, he also signed up for credit monitoring to track the immigrants’ credit scores and fabricated income statements, the Justice Department said. |
former top lawyer for Immigration and Customs Enforcement pleaded guilty on Thursday to stealing the identities of seven people in deportation proceedings and buying more than $190,000 in goods under their names, the federal authorities said.