By JON SARCHE
Associated Press Writer
DENVER- Federal authorities said Wednesday they have disrupted a far-flung counterfeiting ring that produces fake immigration and identification documents, and they hope to extradite the alleged leader from Mexico.
An indictment accuses Pedro Castorena-Ibarra of Guadalajara, Mexico, of running a franchise-style operation with cells in more than a dozen cities across the country. Cell leaders pay a “franchise fee” to operate the business, said Marcy Forman, director of investigations for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
A federal grand jury last week indicted Castorena-Ibarra, 42, on five counts of fraud and conspiracy. Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Leone said federal authorities will work with their Mexican counterparts to extradite Castorena-Ibarra, who faces a maximum 65 years in prison if convicted on all counts. Leone said a 20-year sentence would be more likely.
Also indicted was Francisco Javier Miranda-Espinosa, who is accused of running the Denver cell of the counterfeiting operation. He was arrested on immigration charges in January at his apartment in suburban Aurora, where authorities found fake documents and equipment to make them.
The indictment accuses him of fraud, conspiracy and identity theft.
Authorities said the indictments, coupled with the seizure of documents and equipment, will hurt the ring but not break it up. They said the organization has bounced back from the convictions of numerous members in the past decade.
“We are not naive enough to believe we’ve ended false-document production, but we think we had a great impact here,” said Jeffrey Copp, special agent in charge of the Denver Immigration and Customs office.