According to federal authorities, 19 illegal immigrants are charged with voting in North Carolina during the 2016 election, with several charged with voting more than once.
The indictments included illegal voting in Wake, Johnston, Cumberland and Wilson counties, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, reports CBS affiliate WFMY in Greensboro. The suspects were indicted by a federal grand jury in Wilmington.
One of the suspects, 58-year-old Ramon Esteban Paez-Jerez, of the Dominican Republic, voted illegally in Wake County on Nov. 8, according to officials. He has been charged with two counts of passport fraud.
Several others face several charges, including falsely claiming U.S. citizenship to vote and voting by an alien. The suspects are from Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Nigeria, Philippines, Panama, Grenada, Guyana, Japan, El Salvador, Italy, Haiti, Korea, Germany and Poland.
If convicted, the defendants could face up to a year in prison, a $100,000 fine and supervised release.
The cases are being investigated under a newly created framework, consisting of the Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force (DBFTF) in the Eastern District of North Carolina and led by Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, and assisted by Enforcement Removal Operations and the Department of State – Diplomatic Security Service. The investigation as to voting fraud is ongoing.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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