A Peruvian national residing in Darien, Connecticut, has been charged with multiple immigration fraud offenses, according to an announcement from David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut. The federal criminal complaint alleges that Flor Consuelo Del Carmen Caballero Bernabe, 55, entered the U.S. in 2000 on a non-immigrant visa and later assumed the identity and social security number (SSN) of a U.S. citizen born in Puerto Rico.
Authorities allege that Caballero Bernabe used this fraudulent identity to live and work in Connecticut and maintain a Commercial Driver’s License. Additionally, she is accused of using the stolen SSN to apply for a U.S. passport in 2005, renew it in 2015, and travel internationally under that name. In 2021, after completing a Probate Court process for a name and gender change, Caballero Bernabe renewed her passport under the name Byron Ruiz and continued international travel.
The investigation began when the individual whose identity was allegedly stolen applied for Social Security Disability benefits in 2022 and discovered income had been reported under their SSN by someone living in Connecticut. Authorities state that Caballero Bernabe made several false statements to federal agents during their inquiry.
Caballero Bernabe faces charges including passport application fraud (maximum ten years imprisonment), misuse of a passport (maximum ten years), making a false claim of U.S. citizenship (maximum three years), misuse of a social security account number (maximum five years), aggravated identity theft (mandatory two years), and making false statements (maximum five years).
U.S. Attorney Sullivan emphasized: “a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.”
The case involves multiple agencies: the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service; Homeland Security Investigations; the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General; and the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Anastasia E. King is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution falls under Operation Take Back America—a nationwide initiative led by the Department of Justice aimed at addressing illegal immigration issues by coordinating resources from programs such as Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). The operation focuses on countering cartels, transnational criminal organizations, and violent crime.
