Agents: Fraudulent IDs plant closed
August 19th, 2008 @ 8:37pm
by KPHO.com

Detectives have arrested two men in connection with the manufacture and sale of fraudulent government documents, said the Arizona Fraudulent Identification Task Force Squad.

Juan Jose Santos, 28, and Alejandro Soliz-Reyes, 34, were apprehended on Friday and booked on 14 counts of forgery, 14 counts of trafficking in the identity of another and two counts of illegal control of an enterprise. Detectives said both men are illegal immigrants.

Detectives served a search warrant for identity theft, fraudulent IDs, and trafficking at a Phoenix apartment complex at 3434 E. McDowell Road.

The search warrant was the culimnation of an on-going AFIT investigation into the illegal manufacturing of fraudulent government documents.

During the investigation, AFIT conducted an undercover operation consisting of a series of undercover buys of driver's licenses, immigration cards, and social security cards, detectives said.

Items seized from the apartment included a computer, a printer/scanner, software, an electronic storage device, a camera, a card maker, 450 pieces of blank plastic card stock, various forged government identification cards, and heavy weight paper, investigators said.

"These detectives work very hard to shut down these illegal operations and jail those responsible for breaking the law," said Roger Vanderpool, director of the Arizona Department of Public Safety.

AFIT is part of the multi-agency Illegal Immigration Prevention and Apprehension Co-op Team administered by the Arizona Department of Public Safety.

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