15 Mexico citizens are indicted

Federal indictments were handed down Wednesday for 15 Mexico citizens who were among 145 people arrested in last Tuesday's raid at the Swift & Co. meat-packing plant in Hyrum. Some of those arrested are also facing state criminal charges.

One indictment was sealed; the 14 others allege such crimes as identity theft, false use of a Social Security number, sale of citizenship papers and illegal use of documents for employment.

The arrests emerged after federal officials grew suspicious about massive identity theft that led to raids at Swift plants in Utah, Texas, Colorado, Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa.

In all, 1,282 people were arrested in what was called "Operation Wagon Train." Some are not facing criminal charges, but face deportation.

Among those who were indicted in Utah Wednesday are: Araceli Anguiano-Estrada, 25; Silvia Munoz-Fuentes, 47; Samuel Beltran Flores, 19; Juan Chavez-Alvarado, 25; Jesus Estrada-Trujillo, 52; Ignacio Sanchez-Medina, 20; Juan Ocampo-Ocampo, 40; Federico Pedraza-Santa Maria, 33; Alejandro Rodriguez-Velasquez, 19.

All but Anguiano-Estrada and Munoz-Fuentes are in custody.

Each has been indicted on use of unlawfully obtained documents for employment; use of false identification for employment eligibility verification; aggravated identity theft; and false use of a Social Security number.

Others who were indicted include Jesus Tafolla-Biana, 23, and Auturo Alegria-Murillo, 24, who are in custody. They have been indicted on unauthorized re-entry by a deported alien; use of unlawfully obtained documents for employment; use of false identification for employment eligibility verification; aggravated identity theft, and false use of a Social Security number.

The remaining three individuals are: Maria Jesus Satoya-Almanza, 28; Enrique Barriga-Sanchez, 28; and Sandra Moreno-Candanedo, 32. They were indicted on fraudulent use of means of identification. They are in custody, except for Santoya-Almanza.

In addition, two other people, Eleuterio Gutierrez, 48, (a U.S. citizen and resident of Texas) and Veronica Carrillo, 41, (a Mexico citizen) were charged last week with sale of citizenship papers and aggravated identity theft. Carrillo is in custody; Gutierrez is at large.

Some people who were arrested in last week's raid are being charged with identity fraud and/or forgery in Utah's state district court, rather than federal court.

"By tomorrow, there probably will be 78 and there may be several more," pending further investigations, said Tony Baird, chief prosecutor for the Cache County Attorney's Office.

Baird said there also could be more arrests: "They were not able to pick up everyone they had an arrest warrant for."