Two Plead In Phony-ID Operation Posted 2007-08-22
After Jail Time, Deportation Hearings Will Be The Next Step

By David Reynolds

HARRISONBURG — Two men pleaded guilty to felonies in federal court Tuesday for operating a fake ID ring that sold false documents to illegal immigrants in the Shenandoah Valley.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Samuel G. Wilson sentenced the two men to months-long jail terms, which were at the low end of what federal sentencing guidelines suggest for their convictions.

Because both men are illegal immigrants from Mexico, they will face deportation hearings after their release from jail.

Gabino Gutierrez-Reyes, aka Jorge Salazar, 31, and his 18-year-old accomplice, Franco Tellez-Rodriguez, have been incarcerated since their arrest in January.

Gutierrez-Reyes, of Middletown, has 3½ months left to serve of his 10-month sentence. Tellez-Rodriguez, of Winchester, was sentenced to time served and will be released to immigration officials, according to court testimony.

‘We Paint Windows’

In a federal indictment to which Gutierrez-Reyes pleaded guilty, authorities allege he started his business in December 2005, passing out business cards that advertised “we paint windows,â€