Thread: CBP Officers Arrest Female Impostor Claiming U.S.Citizenship

C.B.P. News Release

CBP Officers Arrest Female Impostor Claiming U.S. Citizenship

(Thursday, June 04, 2009)

Brownsville, Texas – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested Aida Avitia Perez, a 28-year-old Mexican citizen and resident of Monterey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, on June 1 at the Brownsville port of entry.

A CBP officer at Brownsville and Matamoros International Bridge encountered the female as a passenger in a taxi. After initial interview it was determined that Avitia Perez is a Mexican citizen and was presenting a Puerto Rican birth certificate and claiming U.S. citizenship.

Checks of a CBP database by a CBP officer identified Avitia Perez as a Mexican citizen that had previously been deported to Mexico in 1997. CBP officers arrested Ms. Perez on federal charges of false claim to U.S. citizenship. She faces expedited removal upon final adjudication of the criminal case.

The review of Ms. Perez’s documents occurred in concurrence with the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which CBP fully implemented at U.S. land and sea ports of entry on June 1, and was implemented in regards to air travel in 2007. WHTI is the joint Department of Homeland Security- Department of State program that implements a key 9/11 Commission recommendation and Congressional mandate to establish document requirements for travelers entering the U.S. who were previously exempt, including citizens of the U.S., Canada and Bermuda. Under WHTI, U.S. and Canadian citizens entering the U.S. at sea or land ports of entry must present a WHTI-compliant document such as a passport, a U.S. passport card, a trusted traveler card (NEXUS, SENTRI or FAST) or an enhanced driver’s license.

“CBP officers are well trained in the requirements that WHTI has implemented. The new six WHTI-approved travel documents will continue to secure the border and assist legitimate travelers by making their entry into the country a faster and more efficient process,â€

A CBP officer at Brownsville and Matamoros International Bridge encountered the female as a passenger in a taxi. After initial interview it was determined that Avitia Perez is a Mexican citizen and was presenting a Puerto Rican birth certificate and claiming U.S. citizenship.

One catch! If only every job had to use E-VERIFY, every police officer had to use 287g Program in every day transactions, and our border were totally secure - we could try to believe in our government again.