Maryland man facing charges for lying about citizenship, illegally receiving retirement benefits
A 73-year-old Maryland man has been charged with lying about his citizenship, misusing social security and committing passport fraud, according to the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Jorge Echeverri is a Columbian national who officials believe entered the U.S. illegally in 1972.
According to court documents, he was deported three times and illegally re-entered the country for a fourth time between 1985 and 1987.
Echeverri allegedly used a fake birth certificate from Puerto Rico to create a fake identity before living as a U.S. citizen under the name Pedro Torres Rivera.
With the fake identity, Echeverri illegally applied for and received retirement benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA) from 2010 to 2025.
Court records show Echeverri also applied for a U.S. passport, voted in the 2020 and 2024 presidential elections and misused a Social Security number.
If convicted, Echeverri could face up to 20 years in prison for the offenses, according to court officials.
Crackdown on illegal immigration
The indictment comes as the Trump administration is taking an aggressive approach to crack down on illegal immigration.
Since taking office, President Trump has created several policies that ended protections for some migrant groups and increased deportations. The president has also rolled back some of the Biden administration’s policies, allowing immigration arrests at some protected locations and allowing migrant families with children to be detained.
The administration has also called for immigrants in the U.S. to sign up for a government registry.
As the administration’s crackdown continues, the amount of illegal border crossings has dropped to historic levels, CBS News reported.
In February, the Border Patrol reported about 8,450 migrant apprehensions along the U.S.-Mexico border, according to CBS News.
