Clinton J. Johnson U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma
A couple from Mexico has been sentenced in federal court for producing and selling thousands of counterfeit identification documents across the United States, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.
Karina Garcia-Salazar, 47, received a sentence from U.S. District Judge Sara E. Hill for conspiracy to transfer identification documents and conspiracy to possess with intent to use or transfer five or more documents. Judge Hill ordered her imprisonment and supervised release, though the specific duration was not disclosed.
Her co-defendant, Jorge Augusto Prieto-Gamboa, 41, was sentenced in December 2025 for conspiracy to possess five or more documents with intent to transfer. He was ordered to serve 15 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
Between August 2020 and their arrest in February 2025, Garcia-Salazar and Prieto-Gamboa worked together making fake immigration documents. Court records show they sold these false IDs during several controlled buys set up by law enforcement agents. The agents confirmed that both individuals were involved in selling identification cards and Social Security cards.
Law enforcement executed a search warrant at their Tulsa residence where they found at least 67 completed fake documents along with several electronic devices. Upon searching these devices, agents discovered over 2,000 different forms of identification including Social Security cards, permanent resident cards, state driver’s licenses and ID cards, foreign IDs, and passports. Communications on the devices showed client conversations containing personal information needed for the false documents as well as images confirming document completion. Agents also recovered ledgers tracking clients and images of mailed envelopes sent throughout the country.
Bank records revealed that Garcia-Salazar used a fraudulent Mexican passport to open a checking account instead of her lawful permanent resident card. Financial transactions indicated the couple charged between $120 and $150 per fake card. During the search, authorities found this fake passport along with more than $32,000 in cash.
The investigation determined that at least one counterfeit ID produced by Garcia-Salazar was sold to another defendant prosecuted in the Northern District of Oklahoma who later admitted smuggling multiple kilograms of methamphetamine and black tar heroin into the United States.
Court records indicate that Garcia-Salazar had obtained legal permanent residency while Prieto-Gamboa entered the U.S. unlawfully in 2002. Both will remain in custody pending transfer to federal prison.
Homeland Security Investigations led the case while Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Greenough handled prosecution.
The Dallas Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) investigated and prosecuted this case as part of Operation Take Back America—a nationwide initiative created under Executive Order 14159 aimed at combating illegal immigration and dismantling criminal organizations.
