United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa
11/20/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/20/2024 16:12
Guatemalan Man Sentenced to Prison for Document Fraud
Press Release
Guatemalan Man Sentenced to Prison for Document Fraud
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Iowa
Possessed Fraudulent Permanent Resident Card to Show Authorization to Work or Reside in the United States After Having Been Deported
A man who possessed a fraudulent permanent resident card was sentenced today to almost three months in federal prison.
Rodolfo Duran-Matul, age 27, a citizen of Guatemala residing in Belmond, Iowa, received the prison term after an October 8, 2024, guilty plea to one count of unlawful possession of an identification document.
In a plea agreement, Duran-Matul admitted he had previously been deported from the United States and illegally reentered the United States without the permission of the United States government. Duran-Matul was previously deported in August 2018.
Duran-Matul also admitted that in August 2024, when he was arrested on state charges, he possessed a fraudulent permanent resident card ("green card") bearing his name and photograph. The number on the green card was assigned to someone else. Permanent resident cards are documents prescribed by statute or regulation for entry into or as evidence of authorized stay or employment in the United States. As an alien unlawfully in the United States, Duran-Matul was not authorized to work in the United States.
Duran-Matul was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Duran-Matul was sentenced to 85 days' imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Duran-Matul is being held in the United States Marshal's custody until he can be turned over to immigration officials.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 24-CR-2038.
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Updated November 20, 2024
Topic
Immigration
Component