May 13, 10

NEWS / Dulles CBP Arrests Alleged Bolivian Impostor with Puerto Rico Birth Certificate

Sterling, Va., - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested a Bolivian man at Washington-Dulles International Airport on Thursday on allegations that he was an impostor pretending to be a U.S. citizen.

Officers arrested Juan Condori Sejas, 51, after he attempted to use a Puerto Rico birth certificate and a U.S. Social Security Card to acquire a Customs seal on his Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport employee ID. A Customs seal allows bearers access to restricted security areas.

“Customs and Border Protection officers are proficient at detecting fraudulent identity documents and suspected that the birth certificate that Conderi Sejas possessed is a fake,” said Christopher Hess, CBP port director for the Port of Washington, D.C. “This expertise is a significant deterrent to keeping illegal aliens, narco-traffickers and terrorists away from airport employment positions that could facilitate the smuggling of humans, weapons, currency or narcotics into the United States, and it helps to keep airline passengers safe.”

During routine questioning, Condori Sejas allegedly claimed to have crossed the U.S. border with Mexico in 2006 without CBP inspection and that he purchased the birth certificate and social security card from a human trafficker.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia is prosecuting Condori Sejas for immigration fraud.

CBP placed a detainer on Condori Sejas, who will likely be removed from the United States should he be convicted. Foreign nationals who violate U.S. immigration law may be barred from returning to the U.S. for a period of no less than five years.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/05122010_5.xml

Tags: document, birth certificate, birth certificat,