2010-06-16 / Crime & Courts

McAllen woman gets prison over immigration scam

HOUSTON (AP) - A nearly five-year prison term has been ordered for a woman convicted in a bogus immigration document scheme in south Texas.

Prosecutors say 36-year-old Jennifer Martinez of McAllen falsely posed as a federal immigration officer.

Martinez in February pleaded guilty to wire fraud. A federal judge in Houston on Tuesday sentenced Martinez to 57 months in prison and ordered her to make more than $236,000 in restitution.

Martinez has been in custody since her November arrest, after investigators say she wrongly claimed to be a federal employee and offered to sell immigration documents. Prosecutors say the time frame for the scam was 2007 until last fall.

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