Thread: NE-Nebraska City worker jailed for identify theft

Nebraska City worker jailed for identify theft


District Judge Randall Rehmeier sentenced Oscar Pena-Decena to 1.5 to three years in prison for impersonation of an Idaho man to gain employment in Nebraska City.

By Dan Swanson

Mon Dec 07, 2009, 11:17 AM CST


Nebraska City, Neb.


A Mexican-born immigrant was sentenced to prison Monday after earning over $100,000 in Nebraska City under a false name.

District Judge Randall Rehmeier sentenced Oscar Pena-Decena, an undocumented alien from Tepic Nayarit, Mexico, to 18 months to three years in prison.

Prosecutors say Decena attempted to use the identity of Francisco Gutierrez to show U.S. citizenship and work at Cargill Meat Solutions in January of 2005 and Zachry Construction in 2008.
Otoe County Attorney David Partsch said an Idaho man alerted authorities that his identify had been stolen when he was unable to obtain a driver’s license.

Gutierrez said he had earlier been arrested in California on a felony warrant and was jailed until authorities there were convinced it was a case of mistaken identify.

Partsch said it is difficult to know whether Decena’s use of the man’s identify had anything to do with the arrest, but noted that Decena has multiple convictions for disturbing the peace, assault and driving under the influence.

Otoe County Public Defender Michael Ziskey said the use of citizenship documents to gain employment in the United States is obviously not a issue isolated to Decena.
He said Decena told him that he purchased the documents.

“He did not set out to harm this individual (Gutierrez.) He wanted to work to earn money for himself and his family,â€

One would think the penalty would higher but:

Nebraska 28-608 Criminal impersonation; penalty; restitution

Class II misdemeanor if no credit, money, goods, services, or other thing of value was gained or was attempted to be gained, or if the credit, money, goods, services, or other thing of value that was gained or was attempted to be gained was less than $200. Any second conviction under this subdivision is a Class I misdemeanor, and any third or subsequent conviction under this subdivision is a Class IV felony.