FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	CONTACT: Lauren Horwood
September 6, 2011	PHONE: (916) 554-2706
www.usdoj.gov/usao/cae	usacae.edcapress@usdoj.gov
Docket #: 1:11-cr-00153-OWW

FRESNO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced that Ruben Gonzalez-Gonzalez, 44, of Mexico, Margarito Zavala-Barrera, 32, of Mexico, and Noel Fernando Canales-Amador, 28, of Honduras, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to produce and transfer fraudulent immigration and identification documents.

According to the plea agreements, between December 21, 2010 and April 6, 2011, Gonzalez‑Gonzalez sold fraudulent documents to customers, meeting them in public locations in Tulare County. He took their pictures and collected biographical information, which he then passed on to either Zavala-Barrera or Canales‑Amador to produce the requested documents. Gonzalez-Gonzalez charged about $80 for a set of documents that included a forged social security card and an alien registration card.

This case is the product of an extensive investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with assistance from the California Department of Motor Vehicles. Assistant United States Attorney Ian Garriques is prosecuting the case.

“Anyone who knowingly and indiscriminately sells phony identity cards is putting the security of our communities and even our country at risk,” said Paul Leonardi, resident agent in charge of ICE/HSI in Fresno. “Counterfeit documents can potentially be used by dangerous criminals and others who are attempting to obscure their identities and cover their tracks.”

The defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on November 14, 2011. They each face a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

####

 

Return to Top