A Brazilian man working as a flight attendant for United Airways posed as a useless Atlanta boy for 20 years, federal prosecutors stated.
Ricardo Cesar Guedes, 49, is accused of stealing the id of William Ericson Ladd — an Atlanta boy who died in a Washington state automotive crash in 1979 — to use for a US passport in 1998 and renew it six instances by way of 2020, based on a federal criticism.
Guedes, a local of Sao Paulo, then used the useless boy’s identify whereas getting married and taking out a mortgage in Houston, based on the criticism, which lists his occupation as a flight attendant for United Airways.
There is no such thing as a file of him making use of or receiving US citizenship by way of naturalization, based on the criticism.
Investigators allegedly uncovered Guedes’ actual id by evaluating fingerprints he submitted for his Brazilian nationwide id doc within the Nineteen Nineties.
He was arrested at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in September when he entered a safe crew member space whereas utilizing the useless boy’s id after “numerous fraud indicators” received his passport flagged, the criticism states.
Ladd’s mom, Debra Lynn Hays, confirmed her son died to State Division investigators final July, based on the criticism charging Guedes with aggravated id theft, making false statements on a passport utility and different counts.
Hays didn't acknowledge the Social Safety quantity issued to Guedes in North Carolina within the identify of William Ericson Ladd some 17 years after her son died, the criticism states.
Guedes allegedly took 40 journeys for United Airways in 2020 whereas utilizing Ladd’s identify. He stays detained pending trial, the Houston Chronicle reported.
A United Airways spokesperson confirmed Guedes’ prior employment, however stated he was not working for the corporate, NBC Information reported Tuesday.
“United has a radical verification course of for brand spanking new staff that complies with federal authorized necessities,” the spokesperson stated.
An lawyer for Guedes declined to touch upon the allegations Tuesday, NBC Information reported.
The Diplomatic Safety Service, the regulation enforcement arm of the State Division, investigates roughly 5,000 passport fraud circumstances per 12 months, based on the Chronicle.
Guedes had no prior legal file, the newspaper reported. When confronted by federal investigators in September, he recognized himself as William Ericson Ladd earlier than brokers confirmed him a dying certificates for the boy and a photograph of his gravesite in Alabama.
Guedes then signed a fingerprint sheet utilizing his actual identify, the newspaper reported.
“I had a dream, and the dream is over,” Guedes reportedly informed the arresting brokers. “Now I've to face actuality.”
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