A federal grand jury in Akron, Ohio has indicted eight individuals on charges related to immigration and identity theft violations. The indictments stem from an incident on August 6, when the defendants were found at a manufacturing facility in Canton.
According to court documents, four of the defendants had previously been removed from the United States but were discovered in Ohio without permission from either the U.S. Attorney General or the Secretary for Homeland Security.
The individuals charged are Marcial Ajanel-Alvarez, Emilio Alvarez-Perez, Justo-Amaya Calles, Domingo Calel-Herrera, Juan De Leon Hernandez, Pedro De Leon Hernandez, Diego Perez-Ajanez, and Victor Ramos-Santis. The charges include illegal reentry after removal, false claims to U.S. citizenship for employment purposes, misuse of Social Security numbers, aggravated identity theft, and unlawful use of identification documents.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Assistant United States Attorney Kristen Rolph is prosecuting these cases for the Northern District of Ohio.
“These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.”
Authorities emphasized that an indictment is only an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
