News Releases and Statements

Manny Aguja and Marc Aguja, a former immigration attorney and his twin brother, were sentenced Wednesday to federal prison for facilitating 27 sham marriages that evaded immigration laws and enabled foreign nationals to illegally become U.S. citizens. The sentences resulted from an investigation conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations.

Lewis Gaudinier of Madera, Calif., is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court Wednesday afternoon following his arrest on child pornography charges by special agents with ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

A business owner from Newport Coast, Calif., Mustafa Abdul Aljaff, was sentenced Wednesday to 30 months in prison for conspiring to sell counterfeit integrated circuits to the U.S. military, defense contractors and others.

Today marks the one year anniversary of the death of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent (SA) Jaime Zapata who was shot and killed in the line of duty in Mexico. On this sad anniversary, we look back to mourn the loss, but also to remember the courageous and honorable man that he was.

Rigoberto Bautista-Villanueva, a Honduran citizen with lawful permanent resident status in the United States, was sentenced to 42 months in federal prison for conspiracy to transport 100 or more illegal aliens and two counts of transporting illegal aliens.

A Mexican citizen, Leticia Rodriguez, pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft, wire fraud and social security fraud. Rodriguez and nine co-defendants were arrested on Aug. 9 for operating a fraudulent document manufacturing and distribution network based in Laurel, Miss. and Mobile, Ala.

Four alleged members of a conspiracy to distribute at least five kilograms of cocaine in Florida and elsewhere have been arrested and charged by criminal complaint in northern Florida. The criminal complaint resulted from an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol...

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations special agents, along with Deputy U.S. Marshals from the North Texas Fugitive Task Force, arrested Michael Mack, a fugitive who was featured on America's Most Wanted.

A Mexican citizen, illegally residing in Ocoee, Fla., pleaded guilty Monday to charges of possession of a firearm and ammunition by an illegal alien and making a false statement to a federal agency.

Richard Flores, 58, came to HSI's attention after his employer reported to Seattle Police that Flores had downloaded child pornography onto his work computer. The ensuing HSI investigation led to the discovery of 6,800 pornographic images and videos. Investigators also found that Flores had been previously convicted in King County Superior Court of communicating with a minor for immoral purposes in connection with the molestation of two young girls.

Four members of a large-scale and sophisticated identity theft scheme have been sentenced to prison terms for their respective roles in the fraud, in a case investigated by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, IRS - Criminal Investigation, Bergen County Prosecutor's Office and the office's Chief of Detectives.

ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents, working jointly with Caribbean Corridor Strike Force (CCSF) officers, seized 199 bricks of cocaine Thursday with an estimated weight of 245 kilograms and a street value of around $5 million. Two U.S. citizens were arrested for drug trafficking in connection with the seizure.

Robert Brake and Brake Landscaping & Lawncare Inc. in St. Louis were indicted Friday on charges of fraudulently obtaining H-2B worker visas to support the business. The indictment resulted from an investigation conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG).

A Bellingham man was sentenced Friday to a year in prison and three years of supervised release for attempting to sell a stolen government document that detailed the location of cameras and sensors along the U.S. and Canadian border.

Thomas Leroy Griffin, Jr. was sentenced to 30 years in prison for sexually abusing a child to produce child pornography following an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Over the course of about six years until August 2010, Griffin engaged in filmed sexually explicit conduct with the victim.

An immigrant from Ghana residing in Alexandria was sentenced Friday to 18 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for unlawfully procuring U.S. citizenship under a false identity.

Following a one-day trial on Friday, a Brownsville federal jury found a former reserve officer for the Nueces County Constables Office guilty on three drug trafficking charges, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas.

Reginold Estrada was sentenced Tuesday to 93 months in prison for his admitted role in a scheme to import of 1.9 kilos of cocaine from Panama into the United States via Newark Liberty International Airport. The case was investigated by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

A New Jersey man has been charged with distribution and possession of child pornography, including images of very young children participating in sexually explicit conduct with adults, as outlined in an indictment by the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey, Paul J. Fishman.

Neng Yang, 43, is accused of using his cell phone and an external hard drive to record and store videos depicting his sexual abuse of a minor, on multiple occasions, between December 8, 2011, and January 26.

A man from Elkhart, Ind., Paulino Ascencion-Apolino, was sentenced Thursday to nearly three years in prison on charges of mail fraud and harboring over 100 illegal aliens. The sentence resulted from an investigation conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service & the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles.

A Texas Mexican Mafia member was sentenced on Thursday to 25 years in federal prison for various federal racketeering offenses, and aiding and abetting in the July 2008 murder of Jose Damian Garza in Hondo, Texas. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman, Western District of Texas.

Special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrested two men Wednesday and seized an estimated $1 million of counterfeit luxury brand jewelry items from a pair of vendors at the Gem and Lapidary Wholesalers show.

Larry Orell Brumley of Silsbee, Texas was sentenced to 57 months in prison for possessing child pornography in the Eastern District of Texas, after an investigation conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Brumley admitted to using the internet to download pornographic images, usually of females between the ages of 8 and 12.

A federal jury has convicted a Mexican national of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, possession with intent to distribute, conspiracy to import, as well as importation of cocaine, announced U. S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson on Thursday.