Thread: 2 arrested in Calif. driver's license scheme

2 arrested in Calif. driver's license scheme

By The Associated Press
Thursday, May 19, 2011 at 8:56 a.m.

LOS ANGELES — Two men have been arrested in what authorities describe as an elaborate scheme to help illegal immigrants from Korea and China obtain California driver's licenses using doctored Canadian passports.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement says 49-year-old Dae Wahn Ahn and 47-year-old Chong Hwan Kim were arrested Wednesday and charged with manufacturing false documents, using false documents to conceal citizenship, perjury, forgery, conspiracy and false personation.

Immigration authorities say the men charged more than 200 illegal immigrants between $3,500 and $5,000 to help them obtain driver's licenses in Kern County.

Authorities began investigating in January 2010 after a Department of Motor Vehicles employee reported irregularities in a Canadian passport where new biographic pages had been inserted and the photograph replaced.

Ahn and Kim face arraignment Friday in state court in Bakersfield.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011 ... se-scheme/

2 arrested in California driver's license scheme
By AMY TAXIN Associated Press
Posted: 05/19/2011 08:58:18 AM PDT
Updated: 05/19/2011 01:36:16 PM PDT


LOS ANGELES—Two men were arrested in what authorities described Thursday as an elaborate scheme to help more than 200 illegal immigrants from Korea and China obtain California driver's licenses using doctored Canadian passports.

Dae Wahn Ahn, 49, of Diamond Bar, and Chong Hwan Kim, 47, of Norwalk, were arrested Wednesday and charged with manufacturing false documents, using false documents to conceal citizenship, perjury, forgery, conspiracy and false personation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement said.

Authorities said the men charged illegal immigrants between $3,500 and $5,000 to help them obtain driver's licenses at multiple Department of Motor Vehicles offices in Kern County.

The men are accused of using altered Canadian passports and Social Security numbers that had belonged to Chinese workers in the Northern Mariana Islands to apply for the licenses, immigration officials said.

They advertised services in Korean newspapers, luring clients from across Southern California and even other states, said Michael Toms, resident agent-in-charge for Immigration and Customs Enforcement homeland security investigations in Bakersfield.

"Those who engage in this type of fraud are putting the security of our communities and even our country at risk," Toms said in a statement.

Ahn and Kim were expected to be arraigned Friday in state court in Bakersfield. It was not immediately possible to locate phone numbers for either of them.

Immigration authorities said the two men are Korean citizens and are in the country illegally after overstaying their visas.

Authorities began investigating in January 2010 after a DMV employee reported irregularities in a Canadian passport with new biographic pages that had been inserted and the photograph replaced.

On Wednesday, state and federal investigators executed search warrants at the suspects' homes and a business in downtown Los Angeles and reported seizing counterfeit passports and driver's licenses from multiple states. Authorities also detained four Korean citizens on suspected immigration violations.

A passport from another country can be used to obtain a California driver's license along with a valid Social Security number, said Mike Marando, a spokesman for the DMV.

Since the investigation began, immigration authorities have also arrested four people on suspected immigration violations who had obtained the licenses or drove people from Southern California to Kern County to help people get them, said Virginia Kice, an agency spokeswoman.

The Department of Motor Vehicles has flagged the fraudulently obtained licenses in its files. Anyone who uses one of these licenses at a traffic stop will be referred to investigators, said Eric Light, supervising investigator for the DMV.

http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_1809 ... ck_check=1

I.C.E. News Release

May 19, 2011
Bakersfield, CA

2 charged in elaborate scheme to obtain valid California driver's licenses for illegal aliens

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - Two individuals will be arraigned in state court here Friday following their arrest in Los Angeles Wednesday on criminal charges stemming from their role in an elaborate scheme involving illegal aliens from Asia who traveled to Kern County and used altered Canadian passports and legitimate Social Security numbers to obtain valid California driver's licenses and state identification cards.

In addition to the criminal arrests, state and federal investigators executed search warrants Wednesday at residences in Norwalk and Diamond Bar, Calif., where the two suspects lived, and at business in downtown Los Angeles. During those searches, authorities seized a variety of evidence related to case, including computer equipment, counterfeit passports, lists containing names and Social Security numbers, and counterfeit driver's licenses from multiple states.

The arrests and searches are the latest development in an ongoing 17-month probe by Bakersfield-based investigators for the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), Investigations Division, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The investigation began in Jan. 2010 after an astute manager at DMV's office in Bakersfield noticed irregularities in a Canadian passport presented as proof of legal presence by an Asian woman seeking a California driver's license. Closer examination revealed that new biographic and signature pages had been inserted in the passport and the original photograph had been replaced.

According to the search warrant affidavits, the ensuing investigation by DMV and ICE HSI showed those involved in the scheme charged from $3,500 to $5,000 to obtain valid California driver's licenses for clients. Investigators estimate more than 200 foreign nationals from Korea and China, many who entered the U.S. legally but overstayed their visas, may have exploited the scheme. Subsequently, most of the aliens who obtained licenses or identification cards at Kern County DMV offices requested address changes at other DMV locations in Southern California shortly after submitting their original applications. Investigators say the suspects, who described themselves as "arrangers," recruited clients through advertisements in Korean newspapers and by word of mouth.

"With these arrests and continued enforcement actions, our message is clear: activities related to fraudulently obtaining a California driver's license simply will not be tolerated," said George Valverde, director of the California DMV. "I applaud the joint work by investigators from the DMV and ICE Homeland Security Investigations."

"Targeting schemes like this that enable individuals who aren't in this country lawfully to obtain legitimate U.S. identity documents is a top enforcement priority for ICE HSI," said Michael Toms, resident agent in charge for ICE HSI in Bakersfield. "Those who engage in this type of fraud are putting the security of our communities and even our country at risk. Schemes like this could potentially be exploited by dangerous criminals and others seeking to obscure their identities and mask their motives."

Ironically, the two men suspected of serving as "arrangers" in the scheme are both Korean nationals who are in the United States illegally after overstaying their original visas. They are charged with multiple felony counts, including manufacturing and distributing false documents; using a false document to conceal citizenship; perjury; forgery; conspiracy; and false personation. The suspects are:
Dae Wahn Ahn, aka Caijuan Zhang, 49, of Diamond Bar, Calif.; and
Chong Hwan Kim, aka Wang Xiao Jun, 47, of Norwalk, Calif.

In addition to Wednesday's criminal arrests, ICE HSI agents also detained four Korean nationals on administrative immigration violations who were encountered at the search locations.

DMV and ICE HSI received substantial assistance with the investigation from ICE HSI's attaché office in Vancouver, Canada; the Department of State's Criminal Investigative Division; and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Authorities emphasize the probe is ongoing and efforts are continuing to locate others who may have been complicit in the scheme. Prior to Wednesday's arrests, ICE HSI had already taken at least four foreign nationals into custody on administrative immigration violations who were identified through case leads.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security.

ICE is a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities. For more information, visit www.ICE.gov. To report suspicious activity, call 1-866-347-2423.

U.S. Dept of Homeland Security

http://www.ice.gov/news/releases/1105/1 ... sfield.htm

Document fraud scheme started in Bakersfield


BY JASON KOTOWSKI, Californian staff writer

Last Updated Friday, May 20 2011 12:02 PM



A 17-month investigation uncovered a scheme that began in Bakersfield involving people traveling in the country illegally who used altered passports and legitimate Social Security numbers to obtain valid driver's licenses and state identification cards.

It's estimated more than 200 foreign nationals from Korea and China were involved, according to a Department of Motor Vehicles news release.

"This is fairly unusual," DMV spokesman Armando Botello said Thursday.

"I've been here 10 years and something that has been this elaborate and with this many people involved, I don't remember anything like it," he added.

The investigation began after a DMV manager in Bakersfield noticed certain irregularities in a Canadian passport. Close examination of the passport, presented to the manager by an Asian woman in January 2010, revealed new biographic pages and signature pages had been inserted, and the original passport photograph had been replaced.

State and federal investigators served search warrants in connection with the case Wednesday at residences in Norwalk and Diamond Bar, and at a business in downtown Los Angeles, the news release said. Authorities arrested two suspected ringleaders and seized evidence including computer equipment, counterfeit passports, lists containing names and Social Security numbers and counterfeit driver's licenses from several states.

Botello said he doesn't know how the suspects, Dae Wahn Ahn, 49, of Diamond Bar, and Chong Hwan Kim, 47, of Norwalk, obtained the Social Security numbers.

Ahn and Kim are scheduled to be arraigned in Kern County Superior Court Friday afternoon, the news release said.

A receptionist at the Kern County District Attorney's office said their names hadn't yet shown up as being assigned to a prosecutor as of Thursday afternoon. The Kern County Sheriff's Department website listed both suspects as being held at the downtown jail.

The investigation, conducted by Bakersfield-based DMV investigators and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, revealed Ahn and Kim charged between $3,500 and $5,000 to obtain valid California driver's licenses for clients, the news release said. Ahn and Kim, who described themselves as "arrangers," are accused of recruiting clients through advertisements in Korean newspapers and by word of mouth.

Many of the people involved had entered the U.S. legally, but their visas had expired, the news release said. Both Ahn and Kim are Korean nationals whose visas had expired.

Although the scheme began in Bakersfield, Ahn and Kim brought clients to DMV offices in Fresno and as far north as Modesto, and even traveled south as far as Orange County to fraudulently obtain licenses and identification cards, said DMV supervising investigator Eric Light.

"We truly don't know why it started in Bakersfield," Light said.

Ahn and Kim have been booked on suspicion of felony counts including manufacturing and distributing false documents, using a false document to conceal citizenship, perjury, forgery, conspiracy and false personation, according to the news release.

In addition to the arrests, four Korean nationals were detained on administrative immigration violations at locations where the search warrants were served, the news release said.

The investigation continues.

www.bakersfield.com