http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=/Nation/archive/200701/NAT2007011 6c.html
Justice Department Charges 148 Illegal Aliens With Identity Theft By Melanie Hunter CNSNews.com Senior Editor January 16, 2007 (CNSNews.com) - The Justice Department announced Tuesday that federal identity theft charges have been brought against 148 illegal immigrants accused of stealing the identities of American citizens to get jobs. The charges arose out of Operation Wagon Train, an investigation led by agents from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement working with six U.S. attorney's offices. "The Justice Department takes identity theft very seriously," said Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. "We are committed to ensuring that every American's identity is protected and that those who commit this crime are fully prosecuted." As Cybercast News Service reported <http://www.cnsnews.com/Nation/Archive/200612/NAT20061213d.html%3Cbr%3E> , more than 1,200 suspects were arrested on Dec. 12, 2006, during raids on six meat-packing plants owned by Swift & Company, one of the nation's largest processors of fresh pork and beef. "Operation Wagon Train unveiled a clear and disturbing picture," said Julie Myers, Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "What began as an illegal employment investigation uncovered a massive scheme in which illegal aliens used the identities of actual U.S. citizens to get jobs." "Our message is simple: No employee in any industry who uses a stolen identity is immune from law enforcement action," Myers added. In some cases, the victims of identity theft received letters from the Internal Revenue Service demanding back taxes for income they never reported because it was earned by someone using their name. Others were denied driver's licenses, credit or medical services because someone used their personal information before. In fiscal year 2005, the Justice Department prosecuted 177 cases of aggravated identity theft and 344 cases in fiscal year 2006, an increase of 94 percent. A group of Hispanic legal professionals condemned <http://www.cnsnews.com/Nation/Archive/200612/NAT20061219a.html> December's raids, calling for a moratorium on similar actions that "entrap on the basis of race or color." Hispanic National Bar Association national president Jimmie Reyna called the raids "harsh and unwarranted, especially since they involve hard-working people who show up daily at their jobs." [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
