A Guatemalan national living illegally in the United States has been indicted in the Middle District of Louisiana on charges related to fraud in a sponsorship application for an unaccompanied alien child.
According to court documents, Felix Coc Choc, 29, from Rogers, Arkansas, is accused of submitting a false application to sponsor a 16-year-old Guatemalan minor who entered the country illegally in January 2023. Prosecutors allege that Coc Choc claimed to be the child’s brother and used another individual’s identity by presenting a Guatemala national identification card with the name J.C.J. After initially denying the use of someone else’s identity, Coc Choc later admitted to misrepresentation and filed a new sponsorship application under his real name. The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) denied this second application due to the alleged fraud.
“As alleged, this defendant made fraudulent misstatements to the U.S. government to try to sponsor an unaccompanied child in the United States,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti, of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Defendants who lie to secure the care and custody of an unaccompanied child threaten the government’s ability to ensure that the child is placed in a safe environment with a proper caregiver. The Criminal Division is fully committed to protecting vulnerable children and delivering justice to those who violate the law.”
“I would like to thank our prosecutor and our partners for their tireless work on this matter,” said U.S. Attorney Ellison C. Travis. “We are committed to eliminating the exploitation of minors and their families by unscrupulous traffickers, and appreciate the resources which were brought to bear by federal authorities to bring this defendant to justice.”
“Deliberately attempting to defraud a government program designed to safeguard vulnerable children is a reprehensible act that demands accountability,” stated Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Christian J. Schrank of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “In close coordination with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to rigorously pursue those who attempt to exploit the Unaccompanied Alien Children’s program and ensure they are held fully accountable under the law.”
Coc Choc faces one count each of making a false statement and aggravated identity theft. If convicted, he could receive up to five years in prison for making a false statement and two additional years for aggravated identity theft.
The case was investigated by HHS-OIG with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations’ Legal Attaché team in Guatemala, HSI’s Center for Countering Human Trafficking in Washington D.C., and ORR.
This prosecution is part of broader efforts led by Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), which targets human smuggling networks across North America and Central America through coordinated action between multiple federal agencies including DHS, FBI, DEA, as well as various components within the Justice Department’s Criminal Division such as HRSP, MLARS, OEO, and OIA. Since its creation, JTFA has contributed significantly toward arrests and convictions related to alien smuggling activities.
The Justice Department notes that all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
