Los Angeles woman federally charged for allegedly making false claim that she was kidnapped by ICE, DOJ says
Yuriana Julia Pelaez Calderon, 41, is charged in a federal criminal complaint with conspiracy and making false statements to federal officials.
The complaint cites a June 30 news conference held by Calderon's family and attorneys from Movement Legal, where they claimed that five days before, Calderon had been kidnapped by "masked men" at a Jack in the Box restaurant parking lot in downtown LA and taken to the border in San Ysidro.
The family also claimed that while there, Calderon was presented to "[a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] staffer" and given voluntary self-deportation paperwork. When she allegedly refused to sign the paperwork, she was "punished" and sent to a warehouse at an undisclosed location.
The complaint also alleges that Calderon's daughter set up a GoFundMe page to help her.
The Justice Department says surveillance video of the Jack in the Box parking lot shows Calderon getting into a sedan. Investigators also point to phone records that they say show she was in communication with her family during the time that she was allegedly in custody.
The DOJ adds that on July 3, while Calderon was still purportedly missing, federal agents confirmed she was not in immigration custody. The DOJ says agents from Homeland Security Investigations found Calderon two days later at a shopping plaza parking lot in Bakersfield.
The complaint alleges that Calderon and her family knew that law enforcement officials were searching for her but failed to come forward. It adds that she fabricated "rescue" photos that were "made to look as if she was abused while in ICE custody and planned to hold a press conference on July 6 to increase donations to the GoFundMe page and to obtain other benefits."
"The conduct alleged in today's complaint shows this hoax 'kidnapping' was a well-orchestrated conspiracy," said U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. "The defendant and all those involved will face the full consequences of their conduct under federal law."
CBS News Los Angeles has reached out to her attorneys at Movement Legal for a comment and is waiting for a response.
Calderon is expected to make her first court appearance in the coming weeks in the U.S. District Court in downtown LA.
If convicted of all charges, she could face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for conspiracy and up to five years for the false statements charge.
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