Carlos Ayala Hernandez, Counterfeit ID Scheme, California 2023

LOS ANGELES, CA – In a brazen scheme, two San Fernando Valley men produced and sold counterfeit identity documents, including United States passport cards, Social Security cards, and driver’s licenses. Carlos Ayala Hernandez, a.k.a. “Juan Juarez,” 45, of Granada Hills, received a 30-month federal prison sentence on May 4, 2023, while Miguel Juarez Guerrero, 24, of Van Nuys, was sentenced to 20 months in federal prison on the same day.

According to court documents, Hernandez, Guerrero, and Nestor Perez, a.k.a. “Daniel Perez,” 32, of Van Nuys, operated a lucrative business between January 2016 and January 2021, manufacturing and selling false identification documents. These counterfeit documents included U.S. passport cards, lawful permanent resident cards (also known as “Green Cards”), employment authorization document cards, Social Security cards, and driver’s licenses purporting to be from multiple states.

At the direction of Hernandez and Guerrero, Perez manufactured the counterfeit identification documents at a Van Nuys apartment using personal identifying information of real persons. Perez provided the documents to Hernandez and Guerrero, who then sold them to others. In January 2021, law enforcement executed search warrants on Hernandez’s residence and the Van Nuys apartment, uncovering a counterfeit document lab and $40,483 generated from the false identification document scheme.

Hernandez, a Mexican national, admitted in his plea agreement that he knew he was an illegal alien in the United States, including during the times he possessed firearms. Perez pleaded guilty on April 12 to conspiracy to produce, transfer and possess false identification documents, and producing false identification documents. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 19.

Homeland Security Investigations and the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office investigated this matter. Special Assistant United States Attorney Matthew C. Chan and Assistant United States Attorney Gregory D. Bernstein, both of the General Crimes Section, are prosecuting this case. The exact criminal charges against the defendants include conspiracy to produce, transfer and possess false identification documents, and producing false identification documents. The case highlights the importance of vigilance in protecting personal identifying information and the consequences of engaging in large-scale counterfeit ID schemes.

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