Buffalo Man Charged With Trying To Renew The Passport Of A Dead Man

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051

BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Porfirio Rosa, a/k/a Luis Rosa, 74, of Buffalo, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with making false statements in application for a passport.  The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott S. Allen, Jr., who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, on October 9, 2015, the Western Passport Center in Tucson, Arizona received a United States Passport Renewal Application from an individual identifying himself as Luis Rosa.  The application was mailed from the defendant’s residence in Buffalo. As proof of identity and citizenship, the defendant submitted an expired U.S. passport issued in 2003 in the name of Luis Rosa.

Further investigation revealed that the name, social security number, and date of birth provided on the passport renewal application and original passport belonged to a man who died in 1995.  The Social Security Administration confirmed that the decedent’s social security number has not been reissued, and that the decedent’s widow has been receiving benefits since the decedent’s death.

The complaint further states that at the time of his arrest, the defendant was in possession of several New York State identification cards as well as federal Social Security cards containing several different names, dates of birth, and social security numbers. 

Rosa made an initial appearance this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy and is being detained.

The complaint is the result of an investigation by the Diplomatic Security Service, U.S. Department of State, under the direction of William Ferrari.