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December 12, 2006

arrest warrants for identity thieves

Prior to the ICE raid in Greeley, 25 arrest warrants were obtained in Weld County presumably for the persons suspected of participating in an identity theft ring. While I do not mean to imply my approval of identity theft, we have to realize that those purchasing false documents are also the victims of these operations. We cannot close our eyes to those in other countries who cannot put food on their table or shoes on their children's feet -- a situation to which our trade policy has contributed.

It is one thing to be without proper documents. It is quite another all together to be without compassion.

What follows are summaries of the affidavits filed in Weld County as originally published in the Greeley Tribune. These were originally published as a series of five articles, with 5 summaries per article. I have condensed them into one post. All original articles and many others related to the story can be found at www.greeleytrib.com

The Greeley Tribune is reviewing the affidavits of 25 arrest warrants filed Monday afternoon at Weld District Court in connection with an United States Immigration Customs Enforcement raid on Swift & Co. plants in Greeley and other locations. We will post updates of the affidavits in groups of five at a time. These posts will contain excerpts and summaries of some of the affidavits. (snip)

• On July 6, 2006, a woman claiming to be Edna Flores completed a portion of her Form I-9 that identified her as a U.S. citizen with a Colorado I.D. card. Federal Trade Commission records show Edna Flores is actually a resident of Texas and filed a complaint after she got a notice from the IRS saying she owed back taxes. ICE agents compared a photo of Edna Flores with the Swift employee and determined they were different people.

• On Nov. 26, 2002, a man claiming to be Otilio Torres Rivera completed forms that identified her as a citizen with a North Carolina I.D. card. A death certificate shows Rivera died Feb. 2, 2005. His sister filed a complaint after receiving an earning report from the Social Security Administration saying he was employed. His sister also reported Virginia police told her Rivera’s vehicle was in an accident after he had died.

• On Jan. 4, 2002, a man claiming to be Alvino De Leon Correa completed forms that identified him as citizen with a Colorado I.D. card. FTC records show Correa is actually a resident of Texas. He believes his information may have been stolen when he lost his wallet. ICE agents compared a driver’s license photo of Correa with that of the Swift employee and determined they were different people.

• On July 30, 2001, a woman claiming to be Yesenia Lopez filled out forms identifying her as citizen with a Nebraska I.D. card. FTC record show Yesenia Hernandez is a California resident and filed a complaint after she learned someone using her maiden name was employed at “Swift Beef Company.” Ice agents used a copy of her driver’s license to determine she and the Swift employee were different people. When contacted by agents, she said Hernandez said she had never lived in Nebraska or Colorado.

• On Mar. 11, 2003, a woman claiming to be Jennifer Rosas filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Colorado I.D. card. FTC records show that Rosas is actually a resident of Texas and filed a complaint after learning someone used her I.D. to get a driver’s license in Arkansas and get a job at “Swift Beef Company.” She reported someone may have stolen her I.D. when they stole her purse. ICE agents compared her driver’s license photo with a photo of the Swift employee and determined they are different people.

(snip)

• On Feb. 9, 2003, Flavio Alvarado-Villagrana filled out forms identifying him as a citizen with Kansas I.D. FTC records show Alvarado-Villagrana is a resident of Colorado and filed a complaint that someone was using his information to for employment purposes. ICE agents compared a photo of Alvarado-Villagrana with that of the Swift employee and determined they are different people. Alvarado-Villagrana told ICE agents he wished to pursue charges.

• On May 15, 2003, a man identifying himself as Aaron Rey Juarez filled out forms identifying him as citizen with a Wyoming I.D. FTC records show Juarez is actually a California resident, and he believes his information may have been stolen when he lost his wallet. ICE agents compared his driver’s license photo with a photo of the Swift employee and determined they are not the same people. Juarez’s wife told agents her husband had never lived in Colorado or Wyoming and someone had used his I.D. to apply for at least seven places, including “Swift Beef Company.”

• On Nov. 21, 2005, a woman claiming to be Maria Benavente filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a California I.D. FTC records show Benavente is actually a resident of Texas and filed a complaint after she got a letter from the IRS. ICE agents compared photos of Benavente and the Swift employee and determined they are different people. Benavente told agents she has never lived in California, has never been employed and is about 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 220 pounds. The warrant is filed for a woman who is about 5 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 153 pounds.

• On Aug. 6, 2001, a woman claiming to be Karina Jimenez filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Utah I.D. FTC records show Jimenez is actually a California resident and filed a complaint after the IRS contacted her and said someone had used her information for employment purposes in Colorado and Texas. ICE agents compared photos of Jimenez and the Swift employee and determined they were different people. Jimenez told agents she has never lived in Utah and is a U.S. citizen by birth. She said she wished to pursue charges.

• On Apr. 8, 2005, a woman claiming to be Theresa Sanchez filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Colorado I.D. FTC records show Sanchez is actually a Texas resident and filed a complaint after she got a statement from the IRS in Jan. 2003, that her tax refund of $5,400 was being held because she had failed to report $120,000 in wages since 1996. ICE agents compared photos of Sanchez and the Swift employee and determined they are different people. Sanchez told an ICE agent she has only lived in Texas and is about 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 130 pounds. The arrest warrant is for a woman who is about 5 feet tall and weighs 120 pounds. According to the FTC the suspect used Sanchez’s name and social security number for jobs, college and to get unemployment benefits. Sanchez provided several addresses for the suspect and thought she might have gotten her information from her ex-husband. She also said she has been denied credit.

(snip)

• On Oct. 30, 2003, a man claiming to be Luis J. Pena filled out forms identifying him as a citizen and a Colorado driver’s license. FTC records list Pena as an Arizona resident and filed a complaint after a credit report indicated he had worked at several companies he’d never heard of. An ICE agent compared photos of Pena and the Swift employee and determined they are different people. Pena told agents he works for the U.S. Border Patrol in Nogales, Ariz. He said he learned in 1998 or 1999 he requested his credit report and learned about the problems.

• On Sept. 3, 2002, a man claiming to be Levy Jacob Medina filled out a form identifying him as a citizen with a Kansas I.D. FTC records show Medina is actually a Texas resident and filed a complaint after the IRS sent him a letter about unclaimed income on his 2004 tax returns. An ICE agent compared photos of Medina with the Swift employee and determined they are different people. Medina’s nephew told an agent his uncle had returned to Mexico.

• On June 11, 2003, a man claiming to be Daniel Aaron Trujillo filled out forms identifying him as citizen with a Kansas I.D. FTC records list him as a Colorado resident and show he filed a complaint after the IRS let him know someone had used his information to get a job at Swift. An ICE agent compared photos of Trujillo and the Swift worker and determined they are not the same person. Trujillo told agents he filed a complaint with the FTC two weeks ago. He said he lost his social security card ad birth certificate in 2003 while he was moving. He said he was born in Colorado and has never lived in Kansas. He also said his is 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 190 pounds. The warrant is for a suspect who is 5 feet tall and weighs 125 pounds.

• On May 16, 2003, a woman claiming to be Maria Padilla filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Kansas I.D. FTC records show Padilla is actually a California resident and filed a complaint after she learned someone had used her information to get a job at an unknown company and open an account with Amerencips. An ICE agent compared photos of Padilla and a Swift employee and determined they are different people.

• On Aug. 18, 2003, a man claiming to be Javier Nevarez filled out forms identifying him as a citizen with a Kansas I.D. FTC records show Nevarez is actually a Texas resident and filed a complaint saying someone used his identity to open a credit card account with Citi Bank and an account with Southwestern Bell. He said he’d gotten bills for about $1,000. An agent compared photos of Nevarez and the Swift worker and determined they are different people.

(snip)

• On Dec. 24, 2002, a woman claiming to be Jessica Arlina Borquez filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Colorado I.D. FTC records show Borquez is actually an Arizona resident and filed a complaint after the IRS told her she had failed to claim all her earnings. An ICE agent compared photos of Borquez and the Swift worker and determined they are different people.

• On Jan. 14, 2003, a man claiming to be Gustavo Gutierrez filed out forms identifying him as a citizen with a Missouri I.D. FTC records show Gutierrez is actually a California resident. An ICE agent compared photos of Gutierrez and the Swift worker and determined they are different people. Gutierrez told an agent he had lived in Colorado between 1998-2002 but had never lived in Missouri. He said he had committed a crime while in Colorado and served two years in jail. He thinks his information may have been stolen during that time.

• On June 30, 2004, a man claiming to be Andrew Moreno filled out forms identifying him as a citizen with a Kansas I.D. FTC records show Moreno is actually a Texas resident and filed a complaint after the IRS told him he failed to claim all his earning in 2002. FTC records also show someone had used his I.D. to get jobs with Farmland National Beef Packing Company in Liberal, Kan., U-Haul in Phoenix and Excel Corporation in Minneapolis. An ICE agent compared the signature on Moreno’s I.D. card with the signature of the Swift worker and found they didn’t match. Moreno told an agent he has always lived in Texas. He said his birth certificate may have been stolen and he now owes the IRS because of someone else’s earnings.

• On June 4, 2003, a woman claiming to be Maria Soto filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Missouri I.D. FTC records show Soto is actually a Texas resident. An ICE agent compared photos of Soto and the Swift worker and determined they are different people. Soto told an agent she had lived her whole life in Texas.

• On Nov. 4, 2003, a man claiming to Jose Hector Miramontes filled out forms identifying him as a citizen with a Kansas I.D. FTC records show Miramontes is actually a Texas resident and filed a complaint after someone used his information to open an account with SBC. An ICE agent compared photos of Miramontes and the Swift worker and determined they are different people. Miramontes told and agent he has only lived in Texas but got a letter from the IRS that said he owed taxes on Colorado earnings. Miramontes thinks someone may have stolen is identity from a wallet he lost.

(snip)

• On May 19, 2004, a man claiming to be Leonard Michael Lopez filled out forms identifying him as a citizen with a Colorado I.D., which actually belonged to Aaron Steiger. FTC records show Lopez’s mother, Colorado resident, filed a complaint after she learned someone had used his social security number and his disability benefits were terminated on Feb. 1, 2003. An ICE agent compared a photo of Lopez from his Arizona driver’s license with a photo of the Swift worker and a photo of Steiger. None of them matched.

• On May 12, 2003, a man claiming to be Javier Frias filled out forms identifying him as a citizen with a Kansas I.D. FTC records show Frias is actual a Texas resident and filed a complaint after learning someone at Swift had been using his social security number. An ICE agent compared photos of Frias and the Swift employee and determined they are different people.

• On July 31, 2002, a woman claiming to be Vanessa Caraveo filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Colorado I.D. FTC records show Caraveo is actually a Texas resident and filed a complaint after she learned someone used her information to get loans from the Credit Union of Dodge City. Caraveo thinks her information may have been stolen along with her wallet. An ICE agent compared photos of Caraveo with the Swift worker and determined they are different people. Caraveo told an ICE agent she has never lived in Colorado and is about 5 feet 4 inches, weighing 180 pounds. The warrant sought a female who is about 5 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 110 pounds.

• On July 28, 2001, a man claiming to be Valentin Rodriguez filled out forms identifying him as a citizen with Kansas I.D. FTC records show Rodriguez is actually a Texas resident and thinks his information may have been stolen when he lost his wallet. An ICE agent compared photos of Rodriguez and the Swift worker and determined they were different people.

• On Oct. 31, 2001, a woman claiming to be Monica Salazar filled out forms identifying her as a citizen with a Colorado I.D. FTC records show Monica Mora is a Missouri resident and filed a complaint after the IRS told her she had failed to claim all her earnings. An ICE agent compared photos of Mora and the Swift worker and determined they are different people. Mora told and ICE agent Salazar is her maiden name and she has never lived in Colorado. She also said a company called about a year ago and asked her to pay for an English language course she’d never bought.

Posted by almamia at December 12, 2006 5:51 PM

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