Logan woman charged in identity-theft scheme

An alleged scheme to sell stolen citizenship papers, which officials believe is tied to this week's immigration raid at a Hyrum meat-processing plant, was revealed in an indictment released Thursday by U.S. Attorney Brett Tolman.

Veronica Carrillo, 41, of Logan faces charges of identity theft and sale of citizenship papers, according to the four-count federal indictment.

While Carrillo, a Mexican national, never worked at the Swift & Co. plant in Hyrum where 145 alleged illegal immigrants were arrested Tuesday, federal authorities believe she may have provided documents to some of the plant's employees, said Melodie Rydalch, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office. Authorities were searching for a second suspect, Eleuterio Gutierrez of El Paso, Texas.

The indictment alleges that Carrillo sold two fraudulent Illinois birth certificates and Social Security cards, which she allegedly obtained via mail from Gutierrez, a U.S. citizen.

The documents were sold to an undercover agent for $1,400, the indictment alleges. The agent then allegedly arranged the purchase of another person's identity, according to the indictment.

Each of the two counts of selling citizenship papers carries a maximum 10-year sentence, and the identity theft charges carry a minimum two-year sentence. Carrillo was being held without bail in the Weber County Jail.

Federal or state charges may also be filed against some of the company's employees, Rydalch said.

Tuesday's raid by U.S. Immigration and Customs enforcement agents netted 1,282 arrests at Swift & Co. plants in six states, including the northern Utah plant.

Swift & Co. has not been charged in the investigation, which is ongoing, said Lorie Dankers, ICE spokeswoman.

"This really was an action against identity fraud," Dankers said.

Gutierrez was previously convicted of federal fraud and misuse of document charges in 1998, and of conspiracy to encourage/entice illegal aliens to enter/reside in the United States in 1999, according to the indictment.

Sean McHugh, vice president of Swift, did not return phone calls for comment. The company had unsuccessfully attempted to stop the raid through a court injunction. It's one of more than 12,000 firms nationwide that voluntarily verify new hires' employment eligibility using the federal Basic Pilot program.