>
> We have learned from the Maricopa County Recorder Elections Office that an
> insidious fraud is being perpetrated upon legal immigrants living in
> Arizona. Apparently, unscrupulous people are going through the telephone
> book and finding people with Hispanic surnames and are calling them up or
> visiting their homes and asking them if they are interested in becoming
> U.S. citizens. If they answer yes or that they have started the process,
> these victims are told that the first step to becoming a citizen is to
> register to vote. Plainly, this is untrue. You cannot legally register to
> vote until you have become a U.S. citizen. Only U.S. citizens can vote in
> the U.S.
>
> A large number of innocent people are believing this story and are
> providing either all of the information they need or recognize something
> is wrong and stop short. There are also cases where the victim is never
> spoken to and the information that is entered into the registration form
> is taken just from the telephone book. Even with this incomplete
> information, the forms are completed anyway, often using false signatures,
> invented birth dates and drivers license numbers. These faked forms are
> then turned to the Maricopa County Elections office. At this point, the
> names and addresses of these victims are put into the County's system and
> then checked for validity, which rejects these applications.
>
> Here's the evil part of the story: any person who begins the process of
> becoming a legal U.S. citizen must obtain from their County Recorder a
> letter that they have never attempted to register to vote and provide it
> ICE. If the recorder finds them in the system, they cannot provide that
> letter, which means that person will likely never become a U.S. citizen,
> because they will be guilty of a felony. So even though, these people may
> be here with legal documents, because some unscrupulous person is trying
> to earn $4 or $6 for each registration they turn in, they are destroying
> someone's dream of becoming a U.S. citizen.
>
> Please pass the word on to anyone and everyone who may become a victim of
> this scam. If anyone receives such a call, please call our office
> immediately and report the person's name and company so we can put an end
> to this abuse. If the call is after our normal business hours, please
> leave a message. You should also report this to the Maricopa County
> Recorder's Elections office at 602-506-1511.
