LOS ANGELES
Lynwood woman who dropped out of law school — but who later allegedly stole the identity and bar license number of a New York attorney — is charged with scamming foreign nationals who believe she was an attorney, according to officials,
Jessica Godoy Ramos, 36, was taken into custody Wednesday on a criminal complaint that charges her with mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. Ramos is expected to make her initial appearance this afternoon in United States District Court.
If convicted, Ramos is facing up to 20 years in federal prison for the mail fraud count and a mandatory consecutive sentence of two years for the aggravated identity theft charge.
According to the criminal complaint, Ramos accepted thousands of dollars from several dozen aliens who sought her services in an attempt to obtain legal status in the United States.
The complaint affidavit alleges that Ramos filed immigration petitions on the behalf of some aliens, but in other cases, she never performed any services for her clients.
In at least one instance, Ramos created counterfeit immigration parole documents which a client was able to use to enter the U.S., according to authorities.
According to the complaint, Ramos’ clients initially believed she was a legitimate immigration attorney, but several became suspicious when Ramos directed them to appear at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services offices for interviews – but they did not have any scheduled appointments.
“The crimes alleged in this case victimized dozens of immigrants who were attempting to realize the American dream by paying someone they thought was a lawyer,” said Acting United States Attorney Sandra R. Brown. “This type of scam, which unfortunately targets new immigrants too often, undermines our immigration system and can shatter dreams of obtaining legal status to remain in the United States.”