Dominican National Previously Convicted of Child Sex Offenses Charged with Perjury and Immigration Fraud

RALEIGH, N.C. – On November 18, a federal grand jury indicted Jeffry Jose De Pena, 39, an illegal alien Dominican national who was unlawfully present in the United States, on charges of perjury and immigration fraud.  The indictment alleges that De Pena lied about his prior criminal history when he applied for temporary protection to stay in America.

“We remain committed to safeguarding the integrity of our children and society by ensuring alien applicants provide truthful information and are not child sex predators,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle. “While these charges are only allegations at this stage, the public should know that our office will scrutinize false statements and continue to uphold the rule of law and support our federal partners as they carry out their mission.”

According to the indictment and previously issued court immigration documents, De Pena is alleged to have knowingly made a materially false statement under penalty of perjury on his Form I-821D, Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), when he submitted it to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) in December of 2021.  In response to the question “Have you EVER engaged in, ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in any of the following:…[a]ny kind of sexual contact or relations with any person who was being forced or threatened?” he answered “No.”  CIS approved the application on January 5, 2022.

On February 20, 2023, in the Superior Court in Wake County, a grand jury returned three indictments charging De Pena with having committed five counts of indecent liberties with a child and seven counts of first-degree sex offense with a child by an adult from January 1, 2007, through January 1, 2012. On March 21, 2024, De Pena was convicted of indecent liberties with a child and first-degree sex offense with a child by an adult.  He was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of between 300 and 420 months and ordered to register as a sex offender.  De Pena confessed to having committed the crimes from January 1, 2007, through January 1, 2012.  In 2007, the victim was only four years old.  Because he was not arrested until after he obtained DACA status, immigration officials were unaware of his crimes and claimed lack of sexual exploitation of children prior to approving his application.

De Pena is charged in a two-count indictment.  If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.  

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lori Warlick is prosecuting the case. ICE ERO officers and HSI agents assigned to the Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force are investigating the case as part of Operation False Haven, an ongoing initiative designed to aggressively target child molesters and other egregious felons who fraudulently obtain immigration benefits.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:25-CR-00288.

An indictment is merely an accusation.  The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.