Youngstown Man Charged with Identity Theft

Aa federal grand returned a two-count indictment charging Ricardo Garcia-Baltazar, aka Richard Molina, 37, of Youngstown, with representing himself as a U.S. citizen when he is not and with aggravated identity theft, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

Count 1 of the indictment alleges that on or about January 17, 2013, Garcia-Baltazar, a citizen of Mexico and an alien in the United States, falsely represented himself to be a citizen of the United States.

Count 2 of the indictment alleges that between on or about January 17, 2013 and March 8, 2013, Garcia-Baltazar transferred, possessed and used, without lawful authority, identification of another person, knowing that the identification belonged to another person.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations.  In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.

The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations.  The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason M. Katz.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.