RUTHFULLY YOURS

Hi Gang:

Here is a press release that was issued today by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) that announced the indictment of a fraud document ring that utilized extreme violence as a means of keeping its own members in line and also to intimidate could be competitors into not setting up shop in areas that were claimed by the members of the document ring was targeted for investigation under the case name, “Operation Phalanx.”

I am concerned that John Morton the Director of ICE did not seem as concerned about the threat that false identity documents presents to the security of our nation as he should be.  He said that Document fraud was not just about about paperwork but can involve violence.  He did note that fraud documents could provide people (I presume he meant illegal aliens) with the appearance of lawful status and access to opportunities to which they are not entitled.

Certainly much of what he said is accurate, but no where in his statement is any acknowledgement of the national security implications that may be created by providing individuals with false identity documents that can conceal their true names..

Here is the excerpt from the press release that makes note of the issues I have just raised:

Director Morton also left out what I believe are important facts.  I am concerned that although the press release noted that the money generated by this criminal organization was sent south to Mexico, the press release failed to provide any information about the citizenship or immigration status of the defendants who were identified in the press release.

We were all taught that a good report needs to answer the questions, “Who?”  “What?”  “Where?”  “When?”  “Why?” and  “How?”

It would certainly seem that in order to fully answer the first of those questions  (Who?) the citizenship and immigration status of the defendant is important.  It would also have been of value to note who the majority of the customers of this ring were.  I would remind you that the enforcement of our nation’s immigration laws is the sole responsibility of ICE, (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) the agency that issued the press release that forms the basis for my commentary today.

If any of these defendants were illegal aliens it should have been noted by the head of the agency charged with enforcing our immigration laws.  This is more than a bit of curiosity- it is also because at least two of those arrested were alleged to have put a loaded gun in the mouth of competitor.  In addition to charging them with the use of the weapon in conjunction with a racketeering charge, the crime of illegal alien in possession of a firearm might also apply.

If any of these individuals had been previously deported from the United States they may be charged with unlawful reentry- a crime that may carry a minimum of 2 years in prison if they had no previous convictions or, if they had prior felony convictions, that unlawful reentry offense might subject them to the potential for a 20 year jail sentence.  Certainly these are not inconsequential issues- yet absolutely nothing was noted in the press release about possible immigration law violations.

I would also love to know what efforts, if any, are being made to identify those who purchased fraud identity documents from this ring.  When people purchase stolen property from someone who sells stolen property- they may find themselves receiving a visit from law enforcement officers who will seek to recover the stolen property and, if it can be proven that the customer knew he (she) was purchasing stolen property that person will likely be arrested and prosecuted.

Given the abject lack of resources available to ICE and given the orientation of the folks at DHS, I am willing to bet that none of the customers who purchased these documents will be sought or arrested by ICE even though it must be presumed that of the thousands of customers, most, if not all, are illegal aliens.  Although it is not likely that anyone would prosecute them for their having purchased those fraud documents, each and every one of them did, in fact, enter into a criminal conspiracy with the person from whom they purchased the documents.

Let me also provide you with a perspective not provided in the news release that I have provided you below.

Document fraud can be carried out in several ways.  Identities can be stolen by criminals.  This may involve mugging someone to get their wallet and then seek to obtain credit cards and even replacement identity documents that relate to the victim of the crime.  As an INS special agent I often encountered immigration files that contained multiple applications for the replacement of lost Alien Registration Cards- now referred to as “Green Cards” in an apparently continuing effort to strike the term “alien” from our vernacular by open borders advocates.  On a number of occasions, the photos that were furnished with the application for a replacement Alien Card did not bear any resemblance to the alien to whom the original card had been issued.  It may have been that the rightful bearer of the card offered to apply for a new card for someone who paid for them to do so or it might have been that the person to whom the card had originally been issued had fallen victim to identity theft.

In some instances individuals would attempt to substitute a photograph in a card or other identity document.  This tactic is getting increasingly difficult as the methods for producing such cards become ever more sophisticated.

There are also identity documents such as Alien Cards and driver’s licenses that are simply counterfeited and, as you might expect, the quality of these counterfeits range from terrible to nearly flawless.

Documents that are counterfeited or inappropriately issued not only involve Alien Cards or driver’s licenses and passports, but may involve birth certificates, marriage licenses, diplomas, utility bills and other so-called supporting documents that can be used by aliens seeking to alter their identities or seek to apply for immigration benefits to which they are not entitled.

It is an established fact that criminals of all varieties seek to conceal their true identities and movements by creating new identities for themselves.  Sometimes the goal of an illegal alien is to simply obtain documents that provide him (her) with the appearance of being lawfully present in the United States in order to secure unlawful employment or in order to participate in various social/welfare programs.

In other instances, the goal of the customer of a fraud document vendor is far more sinister.

Criminals and terrorists assume multiple false identities the way a chameleon changes coloration, in order to hide in plain sight among his intended victims.

The terrorists who attacked our nation on September 11, 2001 used more than 300 false identities and variations of identities.

During the Amnesty of 1986 the production of counterfeit and/or altered supporting documents became a veritable “cottage industry.”  All sorts of documents were cranked out by fraud document vendors that concealed the true identities of their alien customers or provided bogus evidence that the alien had resided in the United States for the requisite period of time in order to participate in the Amnesty program.  With the extreme lack of resources, there was no way for the hapless adjudications officers of the INS to even begin to challenge the authenticity of those documents.  Back then the originally estimated 1 million to 1.5 million illegal aliens who were expected to avail themselves the opportunity to emerge from the “shadows” quickly turned into 4 million.  INS was swamped with applicants and their avalanche of applications to participate in a program that the citizens of the United States were assured would be a one time program.

I guess the advocates for amnesty cannot count past the number one!

It was determined that fraud ran rampantly throughout this process that no one could really call a system- the term system implies that there was a methodology in place- here the methodology quickly became a matter of running the bureaucratic machinery fast enough to keep pace with the onslaught of applications!

(Today we are being told that there would be about 11 million illegal aliens that the pro-amnesty advocates claim would seek to emerge from those very same shadows.  If history repeated itself, and I have no reason to doubt that it would not, we could quickly find more than 40 million illegal aliens would be surrounding the offices of USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) seeking to emerge from the shadows!)

The document ring that was busted by this operation is one of arguably hundreds of such rings that operate with virtual impunity across this nation.

I am pleased at the great work the agents did in this case, but unfortunately, there are many, many more still “out there.”

I am glad that Director Morton understands the need to dismantle fraud document rings and enforce other laws that involve the presence of millions of illegal alens in our country whose true identities and intentions and backgrounds are unknown and unknowable.

When will the government of the United States hire an adequate number of special agents for ICE to really create a deterrent to illegal immigration and to those who would commit crimes that are valued by the huge illegal alien population in general and are of truly great importance to international terrorists and transnational criminals?