Federal authorities arrested an illegal migrant Friday for repeatedly lying about her citizenship to land a job at an aerospace manufacturer and US military contractor.
asserted
authorities → arrest → manufacturer
Mexican national Alma Patricia Contreras Villafana, 54, of South Los Angeles, was taken into custody by Homeland Security officers after a standoff at the Torrance factory operated by Howmet Aerospace, where she worked as a machinist.
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she → take → machinist
Prior to her arrest, she refused to come of the building for more than two hours as company officials refused to let agents inside.
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officials → refuse → agents
Investigators said Contreras Villafana was initially tipped off to the presence of law enforcement and left her workstation to hide in a conference room.
When she finally emerged, agents placed in her handcuffs.
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agents → say → handcuffs
She is charged with five counts of wire fraud, one count of use of a false and forged certificate of naturalization, one count of aggravated identity theft, and one count of false claim to United States citizenship.
uncertain
She → charge → citizenship
Immigration records show Contreras Villafana was previously ordered to leave the US.
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Villafana → show → US
“It’s alarming that an illegal immigrant who ignored a decades-old removal order was allowed to work for 30 years at a company involved with our nation’s military,” said Los Angeles’ top federal prosecutor, Bill Essayli.
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prosecutor → ’ → military
“It’s also a sign of how lax things were in terms of enforcing immigration laws that Congress passed decades ago.
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Congress → ’ → that
We will not allow our national security to be jeopardized in this manner again.”
Court papers say Contreras Villafana first secured employment at a Howmet subsidiary in 1996 by attesting on her Form I-9 that she was a US citizen.
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she → allow → I-9
In fact, she had been ordered to leave the country by an immigration judge in 2003.
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she → order → 2003
Contreras Villafana submitted another I-9 this year falsely stating she was a US citizen to keep her job at Howmet, providing a certificate of naturalization number that belonged to another person, according to court papers.
uncertain
that → submit → papers
Over the three decades she worked at Howmet and its subsidiary, she was paid at least $1,402,459, prosecutors said.
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prosecutors → work → 1,402,459
If convicted, Contreras Villafana faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for each wire fraud count, up to 10 years in prison for use of a false and forged certificate of naturalization, up to three years for falsely claiming US citizenship, and a mandatory two-year consecutive prison sentence for aggravated identity theft.
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Villafana → convict → theft
Homeland Security Investigations is probing the case.
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Investigations → probe → case
Pittsburgh, Pa.-based Howmet is a major manufacturer of components for jet engines and titanium structures used in aerospace, as well as fasteners and forged aluminum wheels for heavy trucks.
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Howmet → use → trucks
It’s publicly traded and has more than two dozen factories around the world.
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It → trade → world
The company does a high volume of business with the US military.
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company → do → military
In 2024, its Pittsburgh headquarters was targeted by anti-Israel protestors for selling parts to Lockhheed Martin for jets that were used by Israeli forces.
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that → target → forces
Howmet manufactures parts for jet engines and aircraft including titanium components used in Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II fighter jet, which the U.S. has sold to allies worldwide, including Israel.
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U.S. → manufacture → Israel
A representative for Howmet did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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representative → respond → comment
The Aporia
