Arrests of 28 dry up source of phony IDs

By LARRY DOUGHERTY

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 9, 2000

TAMPA -- The word was out. Illegal aliens who needed a fake ID should go to a certain house in Wimauma to see the man nicknamed "El Tigre," federal authorities said Thursday.

Counterfeit Social Security and resident alien cards could be had for $40 to $70 apiece, the authorities said, once you posed for a Polaroid snapshot. A complete package, which includes both cards and a Mexican driver's license, were available for $120.

The fake papers allowed illegal aliens, many from Mexico, to cobble together a persona that would let them work and receive medical benefits in the United States, the authorities said.

As part of an investigation into false IDs in south Hillsborough County, 28 people were arrested Wednesday night by state and federal authorities. The suspects were found with thousands of counterfeit ID cards, $8,000 in cash and cocaine, officials said.

Investigators wouldn't guess how many fake IDs had passed into circulation. But some of the IDs have been confiscated in St. Petersburg, and Hillsborough deputies say they routinely encounter fake IDs when questioning people in south Hillsborough County.

Even as Wednesday night's raids took place, illegal aliens arrived at houses in Wimauma seeking fake IDs, officials said.

At a news conference announcing the arrests, a Secret Service official, Special Agent in Charge Jim Zloto, said investigators wanted to send a message that aliens "should make sure they obtain legal documents, as opposed to going to fake ID manufacturers."

Twenty-two people who were arrested face state charges of possessing false IDs, officials said.

Six Wimauma residents who police said were involved in the manufacture of fake IDs are facing federal charges.

They are 23-year-old Manuel "El Tigre" Beltran, 17-year-old Abraham Ortiz, 20-year-old Nestor Perez Moralez, 20-year-old Francisco Santiago, 21-year-old Maria del Carmen Ramirez and 33-year-old Amarildo Gonzalez Martinez. Perez, Ortiz and Gonzalez also face cocaine charges.

Beltran is the brother of 33-year-old Santiago Beltran, a Mexican national who was charged in February with making and selling phony identification to hundreds of illegal immigrants.

One of Santiago Beltran's neighbors, in Wimauma, counted 160 vehicles arriving at Beltran's residence in two days.

All six of the suspects facing federal charges were ordered detained Thursday, pending a confirmation of their immigration status by the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Some of them have identified themselves as Mexican nationals in this country to pick tomatoes.

Besides the police agencies already mentioned, other agencies involved in the three-month investigation were the Tampa Police Department, the Pinellas Sheriff's Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Larry Dougherty can be reached at (813) 226-3337 or dougherty@sptimes.com.

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