Rachel C. Hernandez Acting United States Attorney for the District of Arizona | U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona
Juan Antonio Ruiz, aged 47 and a naturalized U.S. citizen, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Tucson, Arizona. The indictment, dated March 18, 2025, accuses Ruiz of Naturalization Fraud.
According to legal documents, Ruiz completed the naturalization process in June 2015. During his application and subsequent interactions with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), he declared that he had not engaged in any criminal activity for which he had not been apprehended.
However, Ruiz was arrested in May 2018 for alleged offenses that occurred between 2003 and 2008, including Sexual Conduct with a Minor Under Fifteen and Attempted Molestation of a Child. In 2021, Ruiz admitted guilt to these charges in the Superior Court of Arizona, Pima County.
The charge of Naturalization Fraud carries potential consequences such as a prison sentence up to 10 years, a possible fine of $250,000, and the revocation of citizenship along with the cancellation of the naturalization certificate.
An indictment is a formal accusation and should not be seen as an implication of guilt. The legal system maintains that an individual is considered innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt by a jury.
The investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations. The prosecution is being managed by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sydney Yew from the District of Arizona, Phoenix.
