Venezuelan man accused of posing as Ohio high school student indicted on federal charges
A federal indictment has been issued in the case of a Venezuelan man who claimed to be several years younger than his real age and attended high school in Northwest Ohio.
This is among the legal implications that were faced by Anthony Emmanuel Labrador-Sierra, 24, who had been living in Perrysburg, Ohio, and attended Perrysburg Schools.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Ohio Wednesday on the case, explaining he was charged with possession of a firearm by an alien unlawfully in the United States, making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm, and making or using false writings or documents.
Specifically, Labrador-Sierra is accused of submitting a false date of birth to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on federal applications for Temporary Protective Status and Employment Authorization Documents in 2024 and 2025.
Under the claim that he was an unaccompanied minor, Labrador-Sierra was placed into the custody of the Wood County court system and enrolled in school in 2004. He was even involved in school sports.
The scheme unraveled in May after his appointed guardians informed the school district that he might not be of high school age.
Law enforcement immediately got involved.
This case is under investigation by the City of Perrysburg Police Department, United States Border Patrol−Sandusky Bay Station, the FBI Toledo Field Office, and the ATF, with assistance from the Wood County Prosecutor's Office.
At one point, he was facing an Ohio state charge of felony forgery. But WTOL, the CBS affiliate in Toledo, reported the Wood County prosecutor's office as authorities pursued federal charges.
If convicted of the currently pending charges, he faces up to 15 years in prison for possession of a firearm by an alien; 10 years in prison for making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm; and up to five years in prison for making or using false writings or documents.
