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ICE Says ID Mill Served Undocumented Immigrants
By CHRISTINA E. SANCHEZ and MICHAEL A. SCARCELLA / Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Published: October 26, 2007

ICE Says ID Mill Served Undocumented Immigrants
BRADENTON - For as little as $125, authorities say, two Bradenton men gave undocumented immigrants what they could not get lawfully: driver's licenses, green cards and Social Security documents.

The IDs, created using fake names and stolen Social Security numbers, meant the undocumented immigrants could get jobs and drive cars, privileges typically afforded only to people with legal documentation, investigators and prosecutors say.

A tip from a confidential informant in December 2005 prompted federal and local law enforcement to launch an undercover investigation that ended this year with raids on three houses in Bradenton and the arrest of two members of what investigators say is an organized fraud ring.

The case against the two Bradenton men is part of a large-scale national effort by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to crack down on document fraud.

In March 2006, just months before the Bradenton case launched, ICE created the Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force to lead the charge, according to an e-mail from Barbara Gonzalez, the Miami-area spokeswoman for ICE.

ICE says fake documents are being used to smuggle people into the country and help them obtain jobs and financial benefits intended for U.S. citizens or legal residents.

Someone accused of being one of the key local players, Manuel De Jesus Gonzalez-Roblero, also known as Porfirio "Pilo" Velasquez-Escalante, intends to plead guilty to two counts of aggravated identity theft, according to federal court records in Tampa.

Authorities say Gonzalez-Roblero, 31, is in the country illegally and is being detained.

The charges stem from allegations that Gonzalez-Roblero made and sold fake IDs from three Bradenton residences. He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of two years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The plea agreement, which is awaiting the approval of a federal judge, also would require Gonzalez-Roblero to cooperate with police to prosecute people targeted in an investigation of counterfeiting, according to court documents.

The case of the second man, Vitalino "Antonio" Velasquez-Escalante, 37, is pending in federal court. Velasquez-Escalante, who a prosecutor said is a brother of Gonzalez-Roblero, faces charges of making and selling false identification cards that involved identity theft, according to federal court documents.

From about December 2005 through April 2007, agents from ICE worked with the FBI, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Manatee, Sarasota and Hillsborough sheriff's detectives to build their case on the counterfeiting ring in Bradenton.

The charges are rooted in undercover surveillance, recorded phone calls and five police-monitored purchases of the fake IDs. At least 100 fake IDs were seized in the raids, authorities said.

It all started with the confidential informant who works for the Joint Terrorism Task Force tipping off authorities, Manatee County sheriff's investigators said.

During the next two years, ICE sent local and federal undercover officers on five occasions to buy fake IDs for fees ranging from $125 to $300.

The documents were sold from Bradenton homes in the 3300 block of Eighth Street East, 3700 block of 11th Street Court East and 500 block of 33rd Avenue Drive, according to court records.

Investigators say that on each occasion the scenario was similar:

A man identified as "Pilo" snapped a photo of the buyer, using a Polaroid camera, and asked for a fake name and date of birth. He then would disappear behind a closed door.

Hours or sometimes minutes later, he would emerge with the government ID of the buyer's choice.

Social Security cards, driver's licenses and resident alien papers were most popular, according to U.S. District Court documents.

In all cases, authorities said, the Social Security numbers and resident alien numbers were valid and had been issued to other individuals. It was unclear from federal records how those numbers were acquired.

Resident alien cards, also known as green cards, are issued by the U.S. government to immigrants who have applied for and been granted the right to be in the country.

An undercover Manatee sheriff's detective claims that during an undercover buy in April 2006 he met with "Pilo" at the house in the 3300 block of Eighth Street East.

The detective said he told Pilo he needed an ID because of past run-ins with police. The officer wrote up a fake name and date of birth, and then Pilo went into another room.

The machines in the room went to work, the detective said. Pilo handed over the cards within 10 minutes.

He also reportedly handed out a business card with his cell phone number.

The undercover officer reported that in October 2006 he brought over another officer posing as a buyer who told Pilo he wanted an ID because of legal troubles in Chicago, authorities reported.

That deal reportedly was completed as well.

One time Pilo told undercover officers that he could not get them a Florida driver's license. He said he had licenses for Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina.

In April, authorities raided the three homes.

They reported finding Polaroid cameras, computers, laminating machines, paper shredders and printers and a notepad with names and Social Security numbers.

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