GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – A 41-year-old Guatemalan national, identified as Edgidio Vasquez-Mencho, has been sentenced to six months in federal custody for his role in a counterfeit ID operation in West Michigan, according to federal prosecutors.
A side hustle with federal consequences.
Authorities say Vasquez-Mencho was part of an operation that manufactured and sold fake Social Security cards, green cards, and other identification documents in the Grand Rapids area between 2024 and 2025. His role? Delivery guy meets debt collector – dropping off bogus documents and picking up cash.
Déjà vu at the border.
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This wasn’t his first run-in with U.S. immigration enforcement either. Officials say he had already been caught in the country illegally twice before – once leaving voluntarily and once deported.
What happens next.
After serving his six-month sentence, Vasquez-Mencho is expected to be deported to Guatemala again – this time with a criminal conviction added to the résumé.
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Timothy VerHey says, “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 allowed others like him to illegally obtain employment and claim taxpayer- supported public services. This conduct must stop.”
Federal officials say the case is part of a broader push to crack down on fake ID networks that allow people to work and access services illegally.
