50 people were arrested in the largest single illegal fraud case in US history.
The ring operated since at least 2009, Barack Obama’s first year in office.
The New York Times reported:
Fifty people have been accused of conspiring to sell the identities of hundreds of Puerto Ricans to illegal immigrants on the American mainland in the largest single fraud case ever for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the authorities said Wednesday. Hundreds of birth certificates, Social Security numbers and driver’s licenses were sold for up to $2,500 a set as part of a black market based in Puerto Rico that had operated since at least 2009, according to John Morton, the agency director.
The ring consisted of suppliers, runners and brokers, who made coded phone calls asking for “skirts” for female customers and “pants” for males in specific “sizes,” which referred to ages and identities sought, according to the agency.
