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| John Grubesic |
Fasten Your Seatbelts, Grubesic Might Get in CD # 1 Race
Violators of Immigation Laws Make No Apologies, Claim Entitlement Instead and Plan Open Protests
Governor's Office Talks Driver's Licenses - Documents Many Instances of Fraud
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| Governor Susana Martinez |
ALBUQUERQUE – Three leaders of a Chinese crime ring that used fraudulent documents to secure New Mexico driver’s licenses for over 60 illegal immigrants from out of state are facing over 1,150 counts of felony charges. An Albuquerque grand jury today returned indictments against Gordon Leong, Tin Cheung and Alex Cheung on 386 counts each on charges of fraud, forgery, conspiracy, making false affidavit perjury, and altered, forged or fictitious licenses. “We have long known of fraud and abuse in our driver’s license system and these latest indictments make it clear that we must address the problem,” said Governor Martinez.
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| Beijing Skyline |
“We are attracting criminals to our state who exploit our driver’s license policy and threaten the safety and security of all New Mexicans. I applaud the hard work that went into cracking down on this particular fraud ring, but that is only a stopgap measure until we repeal the law that invites this criminal activity once and for all.”
"We strive hard to hold all criminal offenders accountable. When people come into our state and violate our laws, they are deserving of our best efforts. This is just another example of our commitment," said District Attorney Kari Brandenburg.
"We strive hard to hold all criminal offenders accountable. When people come into our state and violate our laws, they are deserving of our best efforts. This is just another example of our commitment," said District Attorney Kari Brandenburg.
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| Demesia Padilla |
State Taxation and Revenue Secretary Demesia Padilla added, “Existing state law has clearly made our driver’s licenses less secure and now we’re contributing to the public safety problems of other states as more and more out-of-state illegal immigrants and criminal elements are coming here to get driver’s licenses and leave.” The three men are accused of running newspaper advertisements in Chinese newspapers in New York, promising New Mexico driver’s licenses. They leased multiple apartments simultaneously in Albuquerque and secured driver’s licenses for 62 illegal immigrants of Chinese descent, primarily from New York, for $1,500 each between March 2009 and November 2010. Tin and Alex Cheung also notarized residential and lease agreement documents fraudulently for their customers. The illegal immigrants flew into Albuquerque from New York, obtained their driver’s permits and left the State.
The ringleaders had the actual driver’s licenses mailed to an address in Albuquerque and then forwarded to their clients in New York. The New Mexico Motor Vehicle Division has cancelled all the driver’s licenses issued in this case after the arrest of Leong and three of his customers in November 2010. Three customers - Fongyee Hiew, Shu Sheng Liu and Sui Lam - who flew in from New York to obtain New Mexico licenses and have also been indicted on 16 counts each on charges of fraud, forgery, conspiracy, making false affidavit perjury, and altered, forged or fictitious licenses. Arrest warrants have been issued for both Tin and Alex Cheung. Prior Driver License Schemes: Read rest of press release here: News New Mexico
NM Conservative Coalition Schedules Rally
The call to repeal the law that allows issuing driver licenses to illegal immigrants will be central to the We the People Rally II to be held September 6 starting at 10:00 A.M. on the West Steps of the Capitol in Santa Fe preceding the Special Legislative Session. Latest polls show that 74% of New Mexicans oppose issuing driver licenses to illegal immigrants. A KOAT poll showed that 80% of New Mexicans want the practice stopped. Yet State Legislators refuse to listen. The We the People Rally II, hosted by the New Mexico Conservative Coalition, will discuss the risks to New Mexicans of issuing driver licenses to Illegal immigrants. For instance: A growing network of criminals sell fraudulent documents, which falsely declare New Mexico residency, to undocumented foreign nationals for the purpose of gaining a New Mexico driver's license. This makes possible unrestricted travel throughout the nation, enables the boarding of airplanes, applying for government assistance, and so forth.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, tens of thousands of people from countries "other than Mexico" enter the United States illegally every year. It is unknown how many of these have successfully entered the country and obtained a New Mexico driver's license, which is presently accepted as a valid government I.D. This leads to a growing concern that New Mexico driver licenses will shortly be refused as a valid means of identification, leading to the disenfranchisement of all New Mexico driver licenses.
More Driver's License Fraud Indictments
Richardson Serves as Panelist in AZ Town Hall on Water
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| Bill Richardson |
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