A Tijuana man who used an American citizen's identity for more than three decades in order to take thousands of dollars in government benefits was sentenced Monday to 18 months in federal prison.
Abel Alonso Valdez-Vazquez, 59, had been using another man's identity since at least December 1992 and was arrested and pleaded guilty to a federal crime under that name.
Valdez-Vazquez was arrested last year while driving into the United States through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry while three undocumented migrants were hidden inside his vehicle, according to prosecutors.
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The U.S. Attorney's Office said the name he used, identified by prosecutors only as "G.P.," was actually the name of another man, who "had complained that his identity had been stolen and used for decades by an unknown person."
In addition to the smuggling case, the U.S. Attorney's Office said Valdez-Vazquez used G.P.'s identity to apply for and receive Supplemental Security Income from the Social Security Administration and secured a California driver's license under G.P.'s name. He was using that license when he was arrested in Otay Mesa in August 2022.
Along with his prison sentence, Valdez-Vazquez was ordered to pay $81,185.35 in restitution to the Social Security Administration.
"The defendant pulled off this fraudulent charade for more than 30 years, and he had many victims -- from the man whose identity was stolen, to the courts, state and federal government, and the Social Security Administration," said acting U.S. Attorney Andrew R. Haden in a statement.
