Albanian National Admits use of Fraudulent United States Passport

NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County, New Jersey, man today admitted that he used a fraudulently made United States passport to travel abroad, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Jetmir Memija, a/k/a “Shefki Hoti,” 42, an Albanian national residing in Edgewater, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Susan D. Wigenton to an information charging him with one count of using a fraudulently made passport.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

On July 11, 2011, Memija, who had illegally entered the United States in 1996, applied for a United States passport. He submitted false information regarding his date of birth and Social Security number. Memija submitted the personal identifying information of a family member along with his photograph. A United States passport book was issued to Memija based on this false information, which he used to gain entry into the Republic of Albania. 

The passport fraud charge carries a maximum potential sentence of 10 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for March 2, 2020.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian Michael, Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate, Newark; and Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Enforcement and Removal Operations for their assistance.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas S. Kearney of the U.S Attorney’s Office National Security Unit in Newark.