Justice Department Announces Election Crime Charges Against 16 People Across 12 Federal Districts

The Justice Department announced charges October 12 against 16 people in cases involving alleged illegal voting, fraudulent voter registration and related election crimes across 12 federal judicial districts.

The allegations include noncitizens voting in federal elections, false claims of U.S. citizenship, attempting to cast a deceased person’s ballot, voting twice in the same election and unlawfully obtaining citizenship.

Most of the defendants are identified in the department’s announcement as lawful permanent residents. One defendant is described as a French national unlawfully present in the United States. Another allegedly overstayed admission through the Visa Waiver Program before applying for permanent residency.

The announcement describes separate cases involving elections in multiple years, including 2022 and 2024. None of the listed cases is in Oregon.

Alleged deceased voter ballot and duplicate voting

In New Mexico, Patrick Perea, 62, was indicted on one count of fraudulent voting. Prosecutors allege he attempted to cast his deceased wife’s absentee ballot in the November 2024 general election by submitting it to the Bernalillo County Clerk’s Bureau of Elections in Albuquerque.

In the Northern District of Alabama, Forrest Scott Woody, 68, of Hendersonville, North Carolina, was charged with voting more than once. According to the indictment, Woody voted in Calhoun County, Alabama, during the 2024 general election after already voting in Henderson County, North Carolina, in the same election.

Noncitizen voting charges across several states

Four people in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania were charged by information with voting as noncitizens during the 2024 election: French national Hacina Saadi, 48; Pakistani nationals Jamil Ahmad, 50, and Nighat Jamil, 47; and Portuguese national Paulo Silva, 54.

The department identified Ahmad, Jamil and Silva as lawful permanent residents and Saadi as unlawfully present in the country.

In the Southern District of Alabama, Peruvian national Silvia Delgado Phelps, 78, and Jamaican national Staciann Pollion Davis, 42, were charged by criminal complaint. Both are lawful permanent residents. Phelps allegedly voted in multiple elections in Baldwin County, while Davis allegedly voted in the November 2024 general election in Clarke County.

In Missouri, Cuban national Andre’s Garcia, 64, a lawful permanent resident, faces two counts involving alleged illegal voting in the November 2022 and November 2024 federal elections. Prosecutors allege Garcia falsely claimed citizenship when registering in 2004 and 2013 and voted in at least 15 elections over approximately 20 years, including at least 13 federal elections.

Canadian national Stanley Walton, 82, a lawful permanent resident, was charged in Idaho with unlawfully voting in the 2022 general election.

In Kentucky, Canadian national Sandra Madeline Watson, 59, also a lawful permanent resident, was charged with voting in a federal election despite allegedly knowing she was not a U.S. citizen.

Ohio cases include alleged citizenship declarations

Three lawful permanent residents face charges in Ohio.

British national Cary Ann Patterson, 59, was charged in the Southern District of Ohio with illegally voting in a federal election. The complaint alleges she voted in November 2024. Prosecutors also cited a 2005 voter registration card indicating U.S. citizenship and records showing alleged participation in at least 10 elections.

In the Northern District of Ohio, Pakistani national Arshed Zuberi, 69, and Filipino national Eliza M. Moss, 63, were charged by criminal complaint with unlawfully voting in a federal election.

Prosecutors allege both signed registration forms containing declarations of U.S. citizenship. Records cited in the announcement show Zuberi voted in at least six elections and Moss voted in several primary and general elections.

According to Moss’s criminal complaint, she told investigators that someone who helped complete her registration said she could vote despite not being a citizen.

Citizenship and visa-related allegations

In New Jersey, Lizabeth Almonte Rosa, 24, a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from the Dominican Republic, was charged with voting as a noncitizen in a federal election and unlawfully procuring citizenship. The department said court documents and statements made in court indicate she was not a citizen when registered to vote.

In Hawaii, Polish national Dawid Nalepa, 45, was charged by information with unlawfully voting as a noncitizen. Prosecutors allege he entered the United States around 2020 through the Visa Waiver Program, overstayed and later applied for permanent residency. He allegedly voted in November 2024 while knowing he was not a citizen.

The charges are accusations, not findings of guilt. All 16 defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.