Justice Department Announces Charges and Guilty Pleas Involving 12 Individuals for Election Crimes

Today, the Justice Department announced charges and guilty pleas involving 12 individuals, including three illegal aliens, in connection with illegal voting, fraudulent voter registration, and related election crimes across the country. The cases include voting by aliens in federal elections, false claims of U.S. citizenship to register or vote, false statements on citizenship applications, and the alleged disposal of approximately 300 mail-in ballots by a former postal carrier.

Case details are as follows:

Middle District of Florida

Christiane Vinette Young, 75, an illegal alien from Canada, was charged by information with three counts of voting by an alien. Young voted in three federal elections - the 2024 general election, 2022 general election, and 2022 primary - despite knowing that she was not a citizen of the United States.

Southern District of Florida

Haitian national Valery Zidor, on Temporary Protected Status at the time of voting, falsely claimed to be a U.S. citizen to register to vote and voted in the 2024 General Election. Zidor pleaded guilty in federal court to two counts of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by an alien.

District of Kansas

Nigerian national George Olawunmi Johnson, a lawful permanent resident, was charged with one count of false claim to United States citizenship, one count of false claim to United States citizenship in order to vote, one count of fraudulent election conduct, and one count of voting by an alien in a federal election. Johnson is accused of falsely indicating that he is a U.S. citizen while registering to vote in February 2010 and allegedly cast a ballot in the November 2024 election.

District of New Jersey

Two aliens were charged with illegally voting in a federal election and making false statements while applying for United States citizenship.

• Jamaican national Patrick Terrance Reid, 61, a lawful permanent resident, voted in person in the presidential elections held in November 2012 and November 2016, and via mail-in ballot in the presidential elections in November 2020 and November 2024. Additionally, Reid was charged with making false statements while applying for U.S. citizenship.

• Venezuelan national Danubis Bernat, 49, a lawful permanent resident, voted in person in the 2024 general election. Additionally, Bernat was charged with making false statements while applying for U.S. citizenship.

Eastern District of Pennsylvania

Four aliens, including two illegal aliens, were charged with election-related crimes.

• Cliff Sanon, 39, an illegal alien from Haiti who has been residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was charged by criminal complaint with one count of submitting a fraudulent voter registration application. Sanon allegedly submitted a voter registration application in February 2026 prior to the May 2026 primary election, despite being a citizen of Haiti and not an American citizen. The complaint further alleges that this was among eight fraudulent voter registration applications submitted by Sanon, who also voted in the November 2022 election.

• Dilea Ochoa-Perez, 43, an illegal alien from Mexico who has been residing in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, was charged by information with two counts of voting as an alien. According to the information, Ochoa-Perez allegedly illegally voted in Chester County in the November 2022 and November 2024 general elections, even though she was a citizen of Mexico at the time of both elections and not a U.S citizen.
• Trinidad & Tobago national Sade Guppy, 37, a lawful permanent resident, was charged by information with one count of voting as an alien. According to the information, Guppy allegedly illegally voted in Philadelphia County in the November 2022 general election, even though she was not a U.S. citizen.

• Mexican national Eduardo Gallardo Maldonado, 66, a lawful permanent resident, was charged by information with one count of voting as an alien. According to the information, Maldonado allegedly illegally voted in Philadelphia County in the November 2024 general election, even though he was not a U.S. citizen.

Western District of Texas

Mexican national Imelda Magallanes, 51, a lawful permanent resident, was charged with one count of voting by an alien in a federal election. Voting records from the Midland County Elections Office indicate that Magallanes first registered to vote in October 2020 using her Texas driver's license as identification. Voting records also reveal that Magallanes voted in the November 2024 general election.

District of Hawaii

Filipino national Bernadette Acaso, 20, a lawful permanent resident, pleaded guilty to unlawfully voting as an alien. Acaso voted in the 2024 election by casting a mail-in ballot.

District of Utah

Damon Matai Seei, 34, of Payson, Utah with U.S. Postal Service (USPS) was charged with unlawful secretion, destruction, and delay of mail after he allegedly unlawfully threw away mail that he was entrusted to deliver - including approximately 300 mail-in ballots to registered voters in Utah.

A complaint, indictment, and information merely contain accusations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.