Utah
Utah man claiming to help immigrants enter US charged with fraud and forgery
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OREM — An Orem tax preparer has been falsely representing himself as a paralegal and taking cash from folks trying to immigrate into america, in response to investigators.
Oscar Adan Flores, 64, was charged Wednesday in 4th District Court docket with partaking in a sample of illegal exercise, a second-degree felony; communications fraud and three counts of forgery, all third-degree felonies.
In response to charging paperwork, the Utah Lawyer Basic’s Workplace obtained a request from Orem police final yr to assist examine a number of complaints that detectives had obtained in opposition to Flores.
“Two complainants knowledgeable legislation enforcement that they’d been referred to Flores for help within the immigration course of,” the fees state. “(Flores) held himself out as a paralegal who may help them in acquiring lawful standing inside america.”
The alleged victims wrote checks to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Providers that totaled greater than $2,000, and gave them to Flores to deal with, in response to the fees. The checks, nonetheless, weren’t cashed. Flores is listed as a registered tax preparer in Orem.
“Flores finally informed them the checks wanted to be authored from his enterprise account and never the complainant’s private account. Complainants supplied the funds to Flores so he may creator the checks from his enterprise account,” the fees state.
He then supplied the victims with updates on their utility standing, purportedly despatched by the Division of Homeland Safety and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Providers that allegedly included receipts.
“Regulation enforcement performed a data test with these supplied receipt/affirmation numbers” and didn’t discover receipts for the victims filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Providers, in response to the fees.
Flores was situated Wednesday by authorities and arrested. When questioned, he “admitted taking cash” from the 2 victims “however not concluding the applying course of with U.S. Immigration,” a police reserving affidavit states.
When requested concerning the receipts and documentation allegedly despatched by immigration providers, “Flores turned quiet and exercised his rights to not reply,” the affidavit states.