A Guatemalan national, Edgidio Vasquez-Mencho, has been sentenced to six months in federal prison for his role in a counterfeit document-selling scheme in Michigan.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan reported that Vasquez-Mencho, 41, was convicted of participating in an operation that sold counterfeit Social Security cards and permanent resident alien cards to other illegal immigrants in Grand Rapids. He is the second of three Guatemalan nationals charged in this scheme.
U.S. Attorney Timothy VerHey stated: “Vasquez-Mencho deserved to be prosecuted and punished. It is bad enough that he has repeatedly violated our immigration laws by crossing the border without permission. Worse than that, once he got here, he operated an illegal document business that enabled others like him to obtain employment illegally and claim taxpayer-supported public services. This conduct must stop.”
The case originated with a grand-jury indictment in Grand Rapids in September 2025. Vasquez-Mencho was specifically responsible for handing over counterfeit documents and collecting payments from buyers.
This marks the third time Vasquez-Mencho has been caught unlawfully in the United States. After his first incident, he was permitted to leave voluntarily. Following a second removal, he was deported to Guatemala. Once he completes his six-month federal prison term, he will be deported for the third time.
On March 16, 2026, U.S. Attorney VerHey also announced the sentencing of Norma Yanari Ayala—a Guatemalan national previously deported four times—to eight months in federal prison for her role in the same scheme. Rigoberto Vasquez-Vasquez received a concurrent sentence as part of the investigation.
