New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
“The owner of International Guatemala Musical and Fashion Accessories in New Bedford has pleaded guilty to producing and selling fraudulent government identification documents.
Tomas Xirum, 48, pleaded guilty on Aug. 17, 2023 to three counts of unlawful transfer of document or authentication feature and three counts of unlawful production of document or authentication feature. U.S. District Judge Patti B. Saris Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 11, 2024. Xirum was initially charged by criminal complaint in August 2022 and subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2022.
On three separate occasions – May 10, 2021, June 23, 2021 and Aug. 11, 2022 – Xirum sold fraudulent Permanent Resident Cards (commonly referred to as “green cards”) and Social Security cards to undercover federal agents from his store.
The charges of unlawful transfer of document or authentication feature and unlawful production of document or authentication feature each provide for a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Michael J. Krol, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; and New Bedford Police Chief Paul Oliveira made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney David G. Tobin of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.”-Massachusetts Department of Justice.
