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| Fifth Column |
| ICE Agents break up fake document ring in DC |
| 2006-06-22 |
| Washington, DC - Federal agents have closed up shop for what they say are eight members of an illegal alien fake-document ring that for years has sold phony driver's licenses, work papers and green cards to other illegals out of an Adams Morgan apartment. The ring -- thought to be linked to an international organization run by the Castorena-Ibarra family whose kingpin was captured in Mexico this week -- was raided early Tuesday as part of Operation Card Shark, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) initiative that began in 2002. The investigation has dismantled three other counterfeit document rings and arrested 195 persons in Adams Morgan. Of those, all but one have been illegals and most are from Mexico, officials said. Officials have prosecuted 60 illegals, seized about 10,000 documents with an estimated street value of more than $1 million and shut down seven document "mills." ICE agents, with federal arrest and search warrants in hand, awoke the eight men at 6 a.m. in a two-bedroom apartment at 3636 16th St. NW. Inside, agents seized more than 100 fake documents, including green cards, Social Security cards and employment authorization cards. They also confiscated cell phones, numerous electronic devices, equipment used to make the documents and more than $14,000 in cash. In ICE custody are: Luis Angel Mendez-Hernandez, 21; Andres Angel Vasquez-Soriano, 41; Eladio Espinoza-Cuevas, 50; Alberto Martin Vasquez-Soriano, 40; Juan Antonio Pacheco-Vasquez, 20; Julio Cesar Pacheco-Vasquez, 24; and Cesar Cuevas-Mendez, 24, all of Mexico. Luis Vasquez, 33, also of Mexico, appeared before an immigration judge Tuesday, and faces criminal charges for immigration fraud. The others will be deported and face charges at a later date. Charges associated with fake-document rings include aggravated identity theft, which carries a minimum of two years in prison, and creating fraudulent immigration documents, which carries a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, officials said. ICE officials said yesterday they did not know whether the men are related, but said the ring has ties to others in Detroit, Baltimore and Chicago. "It's basically an international organization that's distributing these documents throughout the country, primarily on the East Coast and in the Midwest," said one agent who declined to be identified. "Most of the money is sent back to Mexico. It's much like the drug trade in that it's such a profitable industry and as long as the demand is out there, the individuals will supply it." Customers on average pay between $80 and $120 to receive a Social Security card, green card, work permit or driver's license within 30 minutes to two hours. |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #3 You must ask? |
| Posted by: Fordesque 2006-06-22 21:39 |
| #2 Funny how easy it is to find these guys when they actually CHOOSE to enforce the laws...why wasn't this happening 9/12/01? |
| Posted by: mjh 2006-06-22 16:37 |
| #1 In bed number uno: Luis Angel Mendez-Hernandez Andres Angel Vasquez-Soriano Eladio Espinoza-Cuevas In bed dos: Juan Antonio Pacheco-Vasquez Cesar Cuevas-Mendez Luis Vasquez Alberto Martin Vasquez-Soriano |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2006-06-22 14:50 |