Miguel Merecias-Lopez pleaded guilty of conspiracy to produce more than 10,000 fake IDs that were sold across America.
The fake document operation was operating in Woodburn, Oregon for ten years.
The Fraud Doc Ring communicated with customers using Facebook, email, Snapchat and in person, the plea deal states. The customers paid through PayPal.
Merecias-Lopez moved to Oregon in 2017. He will be deported after serving his time.
He was also selling meth at the time of his arrest.
Oregon Live reported:
A Woodburn man pleaded guilty Tuesday to participating in a conspiracy that produced more than 10,000 fraudulent government identification cards, including driver’s licenses from Oregon and more than 25 other states, U.S. Social Security cards, false immigration records, birth certificates, marriage licenses and vehicle titles.
Miguel Merecias-Lopez, 24, and unidentified conspirators worked out of a secret photo lab in Woodburn, using digital cameras, computers, scanners, laminators and a high-resolution printer to produce bogus documents that they sold and distributed in Oregon and mailed across the United States, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Sax.
The investigation continues and other arrests are anticipated.
Merecias-Lopez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to produce fraudulent documents and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon in Portland.
He joined the conspiracy in January 2017 after he arrived in the United States from Oaxaco, Mexico, Sax said. He’s responsible for creating at least 300 of the fraudulent documents, including permanent resident cards, Social Security cards and driver’s licenses, according to a plea agreement…
Merecias-Lopez, who is being held at the Columbia County Jail in St. Helens, will be sentenced on June 18. He isn’t a U.S. citizen and is expected to face deportation after serving his term, according to the plea agreement.
