An illegal alien who possessed identification documents issued in the name of another real person was sentenced today to two years in federal prison.
Carlos Lopez-Pinto, age 36, a citizen of Mexico, living in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a Feb. 21, 2014, guilty plea to one count of unlawful possession of identification documents.
In a plea agreement, Lopez-Pinto admitted that on March 2, 2012, claiming to be a U.S. citizen, he possessed and used a Social Security card and its Social Security Number and a State of Minnesota Identification Card to apply for work in Iowa under the name of another real person. Lopez-Pinto knew the Social Security Number had been issued to another real person as he had a copy of that person’s birth certificate. The fraudulent Minnesota Identification Card with Lopez-Pinto’s picture had a fictitious identification number.
Lopez-Pinto was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Lopez-Pinto was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Carlos-Pinto is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by agents from the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 13-CR-97.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
