MEXICAN NATIONAL PLEADS GUILTY TO FEDERAL CHARGES FOR STEALING IDENTITY OF U.S. CITIZEN

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Alfredo Mendoza Montero, 44, of Mexico, pled guilty in federal court to charges of passport fraud, false impersonation of a citizen, and aggravated identity theft. The guilty plea was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “My office is fully committed to fulfilling the promise of President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to Take Back America by robustly enforcing our nation’s immigration laws and aggressively prosecuting those who victimize our citizens and communities.  I deeply appreciate the hard work of our federal law enforcement partners to bring this offender to justice.”

Court documents reflect that Montero illegally entered the United States in 2019 and purchased identification documents belonging to a real American citizen. He knowingly used those documents to fraudulently apply for a United States passport in 2022 and obtain a Florida driver’s license in 2023. Montero lived under that assumed citizen’s identity while residing in the Pensacola area until he was arrested by federal authorities on April 1, 2025.

Sentencing is currently set for September 23, 2025, at 11 a.m. at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola before United States District Judge M. Casey Rodgers. Montero faces up to 13 years’ imprisonment followed by a mandatory consecutive prison term of two years and deportation from the United States.

The plea was the result of an investigation by the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service with assistance from Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Enforcement and Removal Operations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alicia H. Forbes.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.