Thread: Oregon Judge Acquits DMV Employee in Immigration Fraud Case

Judge acquits Hillsboro man in license-fraud case
Driver testing - Evidence fails to prove Miguel Robleto helped illegal immigrants get false papers, the ruling says
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
ESMERALDA BERMUDEZ
The Oregonian
HILLSBORO -- A Washington County judge on Tuesday acquitted a man accused of helping thousands of illegal immigrants fraudulently obtain Oregon driver's licenses.

Miguel Robleto, 47, was found not guilty of more than 150 charges.

Washington County Circuit Judge Steven Price, who heard the four-week trial without a jury, said during a minute-long hearing that there was not enough evidence to convict the Hillsboro man. Price explained the decision in a seven-page opinion that excoriated state and Washington County prosecutors and Hillsboro police.

In a trial that included about 175 exhibits and 42 witnesses, Robleto was accused by federal immigration officials of masterminding the biggest immigration fraud in Oregon. He was charged with racketeering that involved 159 counts of money laundering, forgery, tampering with public records, falsifying business records and other crimes.

The charges were connected to Drive Master Education, a private driver-testing business in Hillsboro that Robleto operated under contract with Oregon Driver and Motor Vehicle Services.

County prosecutor Jeff Lesowski and state prosecutor Daina Vitolins presented evidence that they said proved Robleto, a former DMV employee, ran a criminal enterprise. They said the operation sold postmarked envelopes and fake IDs in the parking lot of Robleto's business on Southwest Walnut Street in Hillsboro; falsified drive-test documents by certifying fake addresses or selling them to applicants who didn't take the test; and billed DMV for tests not given.

Twelve people have been arrested in the case; eight have pleaded guilty and been sentenced. Robleto's younger brothers, Sergio and Fabio Robleto, await trial.

State prosecutors said they were disappointed with the verdict.

"We have already secured convictions of eight individuals, but we were unable to get the principal ringleader of this significant crime enterprise," said Kevin Neely, spokesman for the Oregon attorney general's office.

The decision cannot be appealed.

Fred Nachtigal, Robleto's court-appointed defense attorney, said his client was relieved.

"This has been a very heavy burden," Nachtigal said. "There were some people who were involved, but my client was not. The right result was reached -- whether it's the right result for society is something that needs to be addressed by the Legislature."

The decision angered a group of Washington County residents who said they are concerned with immigration fraud.

"It's an outrage," said Ruth Bendl, a Cedar Hills resident who sat through days of testimony. "We have people at the head of the food chain who invite fraud and make it so easy for people to be dishonest -- no questions asked."

State investigators said Robleto and his brothers, who ran La Unica driver-testing business in Beaverton, helped out-of-state customers receive licenses fraudulently. Oregon allows illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses -- but only if they can prove they live in the state.

A license allows a person to open a bank account, receive credit cards, buy airplane tickets and apply for jobs and social services. An Oregon license also can be exchanged in many states with no questions asked.

Investigators say business by the Robletos handled 80,000 license applications from 2000 to 2003.

"There is much evidence pointing toward guilt of Mr. Robleto," Price wrote, "but no particular piece of evidence or combination of pieces proves his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt for any particular count."

The judge dismissed many of the prosecutors' allegations in his report, ruling:

There wasn't enough proof to show that Robleto sold postmarked envelopes. Evidence showed that he communicated with Veronica Trejo Jasso, who was convicted of selling the envelopes that provided buyers with a false address in Robleto's lot, but it didn't show he collaborated with her.

An undercover investigation launched by Hillsboro police was defective because the officers searched for the wrong evidence. Instead of looking for evidence that showed that Robleto cooperated with others to produce the documents -- as prosecutors argued -- they searched for evidence that showed Robleto produced and sold falsified documents.

There wasn't enough evidence to show Robleto billed the state agency for tests he had not given because a federal official auditing Robleto's work did not observe him long enough. Robleto administered tests from sunrise to sunset, and the official who alleged that he had not given enough tests stopped watching at 3 p.m.

Esmeralda Bermudez: 503-221-4388; ebermudez@news.oregonian.com

A young man named Cameron Brown was a hit and run victim here in Sacramento. His attacker was a coyote who was driving a van load of illegal immigrants to Oregon. Cameron was on a motorcycle and the coyote made an illegal u turn and ran him over. Then ran away. He is in custody now. Cameron is dead.
Oregon is providing an incentive for coyotes like that to use California as a stepping stone to acheive an illegal goal.

bootsie thanks for posting this
hillsboro is a mexicano place now-
infuriating
a name to remember Washington county circuit judge Steven Price

bootsie thanks for posting this
hillsboro is a mexicano place now-
infuriating
a name to remember Washington county circuit judge Steven Price

Absolutely, Rebecca. That judge needs to be ushered out the door!