California woman's identity taken by suspected illegal immigrants (81 people in 17 states)

AP on Bakersfield Californian ^ | 6/16/06 | Peter Prengaman - ap

[SE Mom]

Thanks for posting this article.

[Navy Patriot]

Thats why the government does nothing. All the illegals using fake numbers is free money for SSN.

Correct, when a victim notifies IRS that those earnings were not paid to the victim, the IRS cancels the tax assessment on the victim and the SSA deducts the credits to the account. Result, govt puts money in its own pocket.

[texgal]

Not if they didn't pay taxes. The IRS will accrue interest against the taxes due for years to come. She will be lucky if she lives long enough to get the mess straightened out, let alone collect on social security.

As far as they got her number - it's a series of 9 numbers. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to select a series of random numbers. Since they weren't using her name, she probably just had the misfortune of having a number they hit upon.

[kittymyrib]

There needs to be a law that if someone has the grief of illegals stealing a SS number, the taxes paid in to that account should be credited to the lawful owner of that number, just to pay them for the trouble caused...sort of like paying rent on the number.

[A Troop 1-14 Cav]

(Audra Schmierer's Social Security number really gets around. At least 81 people in 17 states - most likely illegal immigrants - have used it to get work without her knowledge.)


She should get every dime of the Soc. Security they earned (if any).

[Rakkasan1]

that would be taking money from the gubmint ponzi scheme and we can't have that.

[Rakkasan1]

Sounds like a great premise for a bill to not only punish illegals and ID theft, but also get rid of sosh security and secure the border.

[mewzilla]

So much for undocumented. Snort.

[garbageseeker]

Maybe she could sue the employers who hired those people who used her SSN and did not bother to check. The employers have to check whether the id is valid and in this case they did not. The employers who did not check the id's violated Federal law and exposed themselves to civil liability.

Section 8 USC 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv)(b)(iii)

"Any person who . . . encourages or induces an illegal alien to . . . reside . . . knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such . . . residence is . . . in violation of law, shall be punished as provided . . . for each illegal alien in respect to whom such a violation occurs . . . fined under title 18 . . . imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both." Section 274 felonies under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, INA 274A(a)(1)(A): A person (including a group of persons, business, organization, or local government) commits a federal felony when she or he: assists an illegal alien s/he should reasonably know is illegally in the U.S. or who lacks employment authorization, by transporting, sheltering, or assisting him or her to obtain employment, or encourages that illegal alien to remain in the U.S. by referring him or her to an employer or by acting as employer or agent for an employer in any way, or knowingly assists illegal aliens due to personal convictions. Penalties upon conviction include criminal fines, imprisonment, and forfeiture of vehicles and real property used to commit the crime. Anyone employing or contracting with an illegal alien without verifying his or her work authorization status is guilty of a misdemeanor. Aliens and employers violating immigration laws are subject to arrest, detention, and seizure of their vehicles or property. In addition, individuals or entities who engage in racketeering enterprises that commit (or conspire to commit) immigration-related felonies are subject to private civil suits for treble damages and injunctive relief. Recruitment and Employment of Illegal Aliens It is unlawful to hire an alien, to recruit an alien, or to refer an illegal alien for a fee, knowing the illegal alien is unauthorized to work in the United States. It is equally unlawful to continue to employ an illegal alien knowing that the illegal alien is unauthorized to work. It is unlawful to hire any individual for employment in the United States without complying with employment eligibility verification requirements. Requirements include examination of identity documents and completion of Form I-9 for every employee hired. Employers must retain all I-9s, and, with three days' advance notice, the forms must be made available for inspection. Employment includes any service or labor performed for any type of remuneration within the United States, with the exception of sporadic domestic service by an individual in a private home. "Day laborers" or other casual workers engaged in any compensated activity (with the above exception) are employees for purposes of immigration law. An employer includes an agent or anyone acting directly or indirectly in the interest of the employer. For purposes of verification of authorization to work, employer also means an independent contractor, or a contractor other than the person using the illegal alien labor. The use of temporary or short-term contracts cannot be used to circumvent the employment authorization verification requirements. If employment is to be for less than the usual three days allowed for completing the I-9 Form requirement, the form must be completed immediately at the time of hire. An employer has constructive knowledge that an employee is an illegal unauthorized worker if a reasonable person would infer it from the facts. Constructive knowledge constituting a violation of federal law has been found where (1) the I-9 employment eligibility form has not been properly completed, including supporting documentation, (2) the employer has learned from other individuals, media reports, or any source of information available to the employer that the alien is unauthorized to work, or (3) the employer acts with reckless disregard for the legal consequences of permitting a third party to provide or introduce an illegal alien into the employer's work force. Knowledge cannot be inferred solely on the basis of an individual's accent or foreign appearance. Actual specific knowledge is not required. For example, a newspaper article stating that ballrooms depend on an illegal alien work force of dance hostesses was held by the courts to be a reasonable ground for suspicion that unlawful conduct had occurred. It is illegal for nonprofit or religious organizations to knowingly assist an employer to violate employment sanctions, regardless of claims that their convictions require them to assist illegal aliens. Harboring or aiding illegal aliens is not protected by the First Amendment. It is a felony to establish a commercial enterprise for the purpose of evading any provision of federal immigration law. Violators may be fined or imprisoned for up to five years. Encouraging and Harboring Illegal Aliens It is a violation of law for any person to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection in any place, including any building or means of transportation, any illegal alien who is in the United States in violation of law. Harboring means any conduct that tends to substantially facilitate an alien to remain in the U.S. illegally. The sheltering need not be clandestine, and harboring covers aliens arrested outdoors, as well as in a building. This provision includes harboring an alien who entered the U.S. legally but has since lost his legal status. An employer can be convicted of the felony of harboring illegal aliens who are his employees if he takes actions in reckless disregard of their illegal status, such as ordering them to obtain false documents, altering records, obstructing INS inspections, or taking other actions that facilitate the alien's illegal employment. Any person who within any 12-month period hires ten or more individuals with actual knowledge that they are illegal aliens or unauthorized workers is guilty of felony harboring. It is also a felony to encourage or induce an alien to come to or reside in the U.S. knowing or recklessly disregarding the fact that the alien's entry or residence is in violation of the law. This crime applies to any person, rather than just employers of illegal aliens. Courts have ruled that "encouraging" includes counseling illegal aliens to continue working in the U.S. or assisting them to complete applications with false statements or obvious errors. The fact that the alien is a refugee fleeing persecution is not a defense to this felony, since U.S. law and the UN Protocol on Refugees both require that a refugee must report to immigration authorities without delay upon entry to the U.S. The penalty for felony harboring is a fine and imprisonment for up to five years. The penalty for felony alien smuggling is a fine and up to ten years' imprisonment. Where the crime causes serious bodily injury or places the life of any person in jeopardy, the penalty is a fine and up to twenty years' imprisonment. If the criminal smuggling or harboring results in the death of any person, the penalty can include life imprisonment. Convictions for aiding, abetting, or conspiracy to commit alien smuggling or harboring, carry the same penalties. Courts can impose consecutive prison sentences for each alien smuggled or harbored. A court may order a convicted smuggler to pay restitution if the illegal alien smuggled qualifies as a victim under the Victim and Witness Protection Act. Conspiracy to commit crimes of sheltering, harboring, or employing illegal aliens is a separate federal offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 or five years' imprisonment.

Enforcement A person or entity having knowledge of a violation or potential violation of employer sanctions provisions may submit a signed written complaint to the INS office with jurisdiction over the business or residence of the potential violator, whether an employer, employee, or agent. The complaint must include the names and addresses of both the complainant and the violator, and detailed factual allegations, including date, time, and place of the potential violation, and the specific conduct alleged to be a violation of employer sanctions. By regulation, the INS will only investigate third-party complaints that have a reasonable probability of validity. Designated INS officers and employees, and all other officers whose duty it is to enforce criminal laws, may make an arrest for violation of smuggling or harboring illegal aliens.

State and local law enforcement officials have the general power to investigate and arrest violators of federal immigration statutes without prior INS knowledge or approval, as long as they are authorized to do so by state law. There is no extant federal limitation on this authority. The 1996 immigration control legislation passed by Congress was intended to encourage states and local agencies to participate in the process of enforcing federal immigration laws. Immigration officers and local law enforcement officers may detain an individual for a brief warrantless interrogation where circumstances create a reasonable suspicion that the individual is illegally present in the U.S. Specific facts constituting a reasonable suspicion include evasive, nervous, or erratic behavior; dress or speech indicating foreign citizenship; and presence in an area known to contain a concentration of illegal aliens. Hispanic appearance alone is not sufficient. Immigration officers and police must have a valid warrant or valid employer's consent to enter workplaces or residences. Any vehicle used to transport or harbor illegal aliens, or used as a substantial part of an activity that encourages illegal aliens to come to or reside in the U.S. may be seized by an immigration officer and is subject to forfeiture. The forfeiture power covers any conveyances used within the U.S.

RICO —Citizen Recourse Private persons and entities may initiate civil suits to obtain injunctions and treble damages against enterprises that conspire to or actually violate federal alien smuggling, harboring, or document fraud statutes, under the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO). The pattern of racketeering activity is defined as commission of two or more of the listed crimes. A RICO enterprise can be any individual legal entity, or a group of individuals who are not a legal entity but are associated in fact, and can include nonprofit associations.

Tax Crimes

Employers who aid or abet the preparation of false tax returns by failing to pay income or Social Security taxes for illegal alien employees, or who knowingly make payments using false names or Social Security numbers, are subject to IRS criminal and civil sanctions. U.S. nationals who have suffered intentional discrimination because of citizenship or national origin by an employer with more than three employees may file a complaint within 180 days of the discriminatory act with the Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, U.S. Department of Justice. In addition to the federal statutes summarized, state laws and local ordinances controlling fair labor practices, workers compensation, zoning, safe housing and rental property, nuisance, licensing, street vending, and solicitations by contractors may also apply to activities that involve illegal aliens.

[Gritty]

Family values don't stop at the border...

[raybbr]

This is what our Senate wants to forgive.

Can any American citizen get the same free ride for Identity theft?

What's The Department Of Justice Doing About Identity Theft And Fraud?

The Department of Justice prosecutes cases of identity theft and fraud under a variety of federal statutes. In the fall of 1998, for example, Congress passed the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act . This legislation created a new offense of identity theft, which prohibits

knowingly transfer[ring] or us[ing], without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person with the intent to commit, or to aid or abet, any unlawful activity that constitutes a violation of Federal law, or that constitutes a felony under any applicable State or local law.

18 U.S.C. § 1028(a)(7). This offense, in most circumstances, carries a maximum term of 15 years' imprisonment, a fine, and criminal forfeiture of any personal property used or intended to be used to commit the offense.

Schemes to commit identity theft or fraud may also involve violations of other statutes such as identification fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1028), credit card fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1029), computer fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1030), mail fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1341), wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343), or financial institution fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1344). Each of these federal offenses are felonies that carry substantial penalties ­ in some cases, as high as 30 years' imprisonment, fines, and criminal forfeiture.

Federal prosecutors work with federal investigative agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Secret Service, and the United States Postal Inspection Service to prosecute identity theft and fraud cases.

Here are some examples of recent cases:

Central District of California. A woman pleaded guilty to federal charges of using a stolen Social Security number to obtain thousands of dollars in credit and then filing for bankruptcy in the name of her victim. More recently, a man was indicted, pleaded guilty to federal charges and was sentenced to 27 months' imprisonment for obtaining private bank account information about an insurance company's policyholders and using that information to deposit $764,000 in counterfeit checks into a bank account he established.

Central District of California.  Two of three defendants have pleaded guilty to identity theft, bank fraud,  and related charges for their roles in a scheme to open bank accounts with both real and fake identification documents, deposit U.S. Treasury checks that were stolen from the mail, and withdraw funds from those accounts.

Middle District of Florida.  A defendant has been indicted on bank fraud charges for obtaining names, addresses, and Social Security numbers from a Web site and using those data to apply for a series of car loans over the Internet.

Southern District of Florida. A woman was indicted and pleaded guilty to federal charges involving her obtaining a fraudulent driver's license in the name of the victim, using the license to withdraw more than $13,000 from the victim's bank account, and obtaining five department store credit cards in the victim's name and charging approximately $4,000 on those cards.

District of Kansas.  A defendant pleaded guilty to conspiracy, odometer fraud, and mail fraud for operating an odometer "rollback" scheme on used cars.  The defendant used false and assumed identities, including the identities of deceased persons, to obtain false identification documents and fraudulent car titles.

 

Back to Top   |  DOJ Home Page   |  Fraud Section Home Page

[Spunky]

"She should be getting some awesome Social Security checks based on all her reported income."

There is something I just don't understand. If I have this correct, President Bush wants the illegals to get amnesty and then be able to get what they have paid into Social Security during the time they were illegals. How could they draw on this since it would be going into the accounts of the people who's idenity they have stolen?

[Spunky]

"Correct, when a victim notifies IRS that those earnings were not paid to the victim, the IRS cancels the tax assessment on the victim and the SSA deducts the credits to the account. Result, govt puts money in its own pocket."

I should have read down the thread further before I posted as I think you just answered my confusion that I posted at #32.

[garbageseeker]

She does however have a civil recourse against the employers who knowingly hired these people and did not check whether it was a fraud or stolen.

[raybbr]

She does however have a civil recourse against the employers who knowingly hired these people and did not check whether it was a fraud or stolen.

She won't win. All an employer has to do is check that the name and the SS number match. If someone was using her name and SS then it checked out ok.

It's the govt., receiving income taxe payments from several different, that is at fault. They don't have any incentive to stop this because of the tax revenue they are getting.

[Navy Patriot]

Actually, it is still a very good question. Some points:

If an illegal uses a stolen SSN, it would be possible to even further harm the victim under amnesty. The illegal could keep records and then demand those payments be credited to him. Under the very best scenario the victim would have more difficulties and delays dealing with the government.

However, many illegals have obtained a tax identification number (TIN) which they theoretically don't have to steal as they are created when applied for. A TIN usage would not damage another person individually (just all of us at once) and allow the illegal to retrieve everything paid into that account with amnesty.

[raybbr]

If I have this correct, President Bush wants the illegals to get amnesty and then be able to get what they have paid into Social Security during the time they were illegals. How could they draw on this since it would be going into the accounts of the people who's idenity they have stolen?

Part of the amnest that I have read says they can claim those bennies by admitting what they did and paying a fine. There would be some way to sort out who was who and the illegals would then be eligible for SS.

[garbageseeker]

I dont think so. I think she has a very good chance of winning, especially if you have a very sympathetic jury. If she has a very sympathetic jury she is a winner.

[garbageseeker]

All an employer has to do is check that the name and the SS number match

But there were red flags on her SSN and the employers went ahead an hired them despite the red flags.

[McGavin999]

And, what is going to happen when she goes to retire? Is she going to be able to collect Social Security, or is her new number going to be used to calculate what she is eligible for?