A Virginia woman who prosecutors say aimed to defraud at least 250 individuals of a total of $100,000 or more by pretending to be an Immigration and Customs Enforcement worker has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Alexandria.
Isabel Pajuelo was indicted on one count of impersonating a federal employee and seven counts of wire fraud, according to court papers filed Thursday. Her arraignment is scheduled for April 20.
Pajuelo represented to victims that she was an ICE employee who had special access to permanent legal status applications and who could influence the application approval process, according to the indictment.
In meetings at an office space in Alexandria during 2010 and 2011, Pajuelo would take victims’ paperwork, provide them with a list of fees for “services” and tell them she would assist them.
Pajuelo gave victims business cards that included the Department of Homeland Security seal, the notation “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,” Pajuelo’s name with the title “Qualified Student” and what Pajuelo called her “immigration identification number,” according to the indictment.
She also sometimes wore a uniform which comprised blue pants, a blue shirt with “ICE” written on the back, a badge and a gun holster with no weapon.
Victims generally paid Pajuelo in cash, but sometimes Pajuelo told them to deposit money into her bank account or to wire payment to banks or Western Union. According to the indictment, the wire fraud charges are connected to payments from Florida, Texas, Nevada and North Carolina.
Pajuelo told victims they would get permanent residency documents within weeks or months. However, the indictment stated, she didn’t help victims with their immigration statuses and instead kept some or all of the money for personal use — including for medical procedures, clothing and furniture.
When victims contacted Pajuelo after their immigration documents failed to show up, Pajuelo would often threaten to call ICE and have them deported if they didn’t stop bothering her, the indictment stated.
Pajuelo’s public defender, W. Todd Watson, declined to comment about the case.
