Between September 10 and 22, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the United States Marshals Service (USMS) arrested eleven individuals in Arizona who are accused of being in the country illegally. The charges include possession of identification documents to defraud the United States, possession of identification documents produced without lawful authority, and false attestation for employment eligibility verification. All charges are felonies.
According to authorities, each person allegedly used counterfeit state identification cards or driver’s licenses and counterfeit Social Security cards to gain employment at businesses in Arizona. They also reportedly declared on Form I-9 that they were U.S. citizens or otherwise authorized to work in the country, though none had legal authorization.
These arrests are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice focused on addressing illegal immigration, targeting cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and reducing violent crime. The operation coordinates resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The investigation is being conducted by HSI’s Phoenix Field Office in Arizona. The USMS in the District of Arizona as well as USMS and HSI personnel in the Western District of Tennessee assisted with arrests related to these cases. Prosecution is being handled by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.
"A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law."
Case numbers associated with these charges range from 25-01879MJ through 25-08483MJ.
