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Nine charged in illegal voting investigation in Tarrant County, DOJ says
Дата публикации: 15-09-2026 16:15:12
Nine people have been charged in Tarrant County with illegally voting or attempting to vote, according to federal and local prosecutors.
The charges resulted from a joint operation involving the Department of Justice, Homeland Security and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office. Federal investigators charged seven people, while local prosecutors charged two people for allegedly voting or attempting to vote in the 2024 election and earlier elections.
Prosecutors announced the cases during a news conference Tuesday afternoon in Fort Worth.
Five of the nine people charged are lawful permanent residents, meaning they are legally allowed to live in the United States but are not U.S. citizens and cannot vote. Another person charged is not a U.S. citizen and, according to federal prosecutors, stole the identity of an American citizen in 2008 and has since pretended to be a citizen.
The majority of the group had been flagged by the Texas Secretary of State’s Office over the years because of mismatched paperwork, according to prosecutors.
The seven non-citizens identified by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas are charged with the following offenses:
Helen Sayen Adams, is a 67-year-old citizen of Nigeria and lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder) since May 2024, is charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. Adams allegedly falsely claimed U.S. citizenship on a Texas Voter Registration Application in June 2024 and voted in the November 2024 general election in Tarrant County. She later admitted she was not a U.S. citizen.
Joshua Nmelichukwu Akpom, is a 27-year-old citizen of Nigeria and lawful permanent resident since 2016, charged with false statements in relation to naturalization. As alleged, Akpom falsely denied on his 2026 naturalization application that he had ever claimed U.S. citizenship, registered to vote, or voted, despite registering in 2017 and voting in the 2018 general election. Due to the five‑year statute of limitations, prosecutors relied on the naturalization offense rather than the voting conduct.
Carlos Salas Barrios, is a 41-year-old Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident since 2018, charged by complaint with allegedly voting by an Alien in a Federal Election. Barrios unlawfully cast a provisional ballot in Tarrant County in the November 2024 general election despite not being a U.S. citizen and not being registered. Although the ballot was ultimately rejected, casting it was still unlawful under Texas and federal law.
Khalwinder Singh Bhengura, is a 69-year-old citizen of India and lawful permanent resident since 2022, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. Bhengura falsely claimed U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in January 2024 and again when applying for a Texas driver license later that year in August. He voted in the November 2024 general election and later admitted he knew he was not a citizen. He was arrested on Sept. 11.
Celestin Katubadi, is a 20-year-old citizen of the Democratic Republic of Congo and lawful permanent resident, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to vote. Katubadi cast a provisional ballot in Tarrant County during the November 2024 general election after falsely claiming U.S. citizenship on an affidavit of provisional voter. Although his ballot was rejected, casting it was still unlawful Texas and federal law.
Rocio Thrasher, is a 38-year-old Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident since 2017, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. According to the indictment, Thrasher allegedly falsely declared U.S. citizenship when registering in June 2024 and voted in the November 2024 general election. She later admitted knowing she was not a citizen.
Moises Anwar Arellano‑Alba, is a 36-year-old illegal alien from Mexico ordered deported in July, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. He allegedly falsely claimed U.S. citizenship when applying for a Texas driver license in 2023 and voted early in the 2024 general election in Dallas County despite being a non‑citizen and convicted felon. He admitted in immigration proceedings that he had voted. Arellano‑Alba was a fugitive until this morning when he surrendered himself to federal agents.
If convicted, the two people facing local charges could receive up to six months in jail. Federal illegal voting charges carry up to one year in prison, while the identity theft charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of two years.
“So checking a box that’s saying you’re a US citizen or telling a driver’s license employee that you’re a US citizen, in addition to other evidence, I feel pretty confident we’re going to convict them. But again, they’re entitled to all the protections of our Constitution. They’re innocent until proven guilty,” said Ryan Raybould, with the U.S. Attorney’s Office from the Northern District of Texas.
About 800,000 people voted in Tarrant County in 2024. The cases announced Tuesday represent a small fraction of the ballots cast. Across the country, dozens of people are convicted of illegal voting each year, according to information presented in the broadcast report.
HSI and the FBI Dallas Field Office conducted the investigations with assistance from the Election Integrity Unit of the Texas Office of the Attorney General and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office.
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Nine people were charged with illegal voting in a joint operation with the Department of Justice, Homeland Security, and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office. NBC 5’s Phil Prazan has the details.
Nine people have been charged in Tarrant County with illegally voting or attempting to vote, according to federal and local prosecutors.
The charges resulted from a joint operation involving the Department of Justice, Homeland Security and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office. Federal investigators charged seven people, while local prosecutors charged two people for allegedly voting or attempting to vote in the 2024 election and earlier elections.
Prosecutors announced the cases during a news conference Tuesday afternoon in Fort Worth.
Five of the nine people charged are lawful permanent residents, meaning they are legally allowed to live in the United States but are not U.S. citizens and cannot vote. Another person charged is not a U.S. citizen and, according to federal prosecutors, stole the identity of an American citizen in 2008 and has since pretended to be a citizen.
The majority of the group had been flagged by the Texas Secretary of State’s Office over the years because of mismatched paperwork, according to prosecutors.
The seven non-citizens identified by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas are charged with the following offenses:
- Helen Sayen Adams, is a 67-year-old citizen of Nigeria and lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder) since May 2024, is charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. Adams allegedly falsely claimed U.S. citizenship on a Texas Voter Registration Application in June 2024 and voted in the November 2024 general election in Tarrant County. She later admitted she was not a U.S. citizen.
- Joshua Nmelichukwu Akpom, is a 27-year-old citizen of Nigeria and lawful permanent resident since 2016, charged with false statements in relation to naturalization. As alleged, Akpom falsely denied on his 2026 naturalization application that he had ever claimed U.S. citizenship, registered to vote, or voted, despite registering in 2017 and voting in the 2018 general election. Due to the five‑year statute of limitations, prosecutors relied on the naturalization offense rather than the voting conduct.
- Carlos Salas Barrios, is a 41-year-old Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident since 2018, charged by complaint with allegedly voting by an Alien in a Federal Election. Barrios unlawfully cast a provisional ballot in Tarrant County in the November 2024 general election despite not being a U.S. citizen and not being registered. Although the ballot was ultimately rejected, casting it was still unlawful under Texas and federal law.
- Khalwinder Singh Bhengura, is a 69-year-old citizen of India and lawful permanent resident since 2022, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. Bhengura falsely claimed U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in January 2024 and again when applying for a Texas driver license later that year in August. He voted in the November 2024 general election and later admitted he knew he was not a citizen. He was arrested on Sept. 11.
- Celestin Katubadi, is a 20-year-old citizen of the Democratic Republic of Congo and lawful permanent resident, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to vote. Katubadi cast a provisional ballot in Tarrant County during the November 2024 general election after falsely claiming U.S. citizenship on an affidavit of provisional voter. Although his ballot was rejected, casting it was still unlawful Texas and federal law.
- Rocio Thrasher, is a 38-year-old Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident since 2017, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. According to the indictment, Thrasher allegedly falsely declared U.S. citizenship when registering in June 2024 and voted in the November 2024 general election. She later admitted knowing she was not a citizen.
- Moises Anwar Arellano‑Alba, is a 36-year-old illegal alien from Mexico ordered deported in July, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. He allegedly falsely claimed U.S. citizenship when applying for a Texas driver license in 2023 and voted early in the 2024 general election in Dallas County despite being a non‑citizen and convicted felon. He admitted in immigration proceedings that he had voted. Arellano‑Alba was a fugitive until this morning when he surrendered himself to federal agents.
If convicted, the two people facing local charges could receive up to six months in jail. Federal illegal voting charges carry up to one year in prison, while the identity theft charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of two years.
“So checking a box that's saying you're a US citizen or telling a driver's license employee that you're a US citizen, in addition to other evidence, I feel pretty confident we're going to convict them. But again, they're entitled to all the protections of our Constitution. They're innocent until proven guilty,” said Ryan Raybould, with the U.S. Attorney's Office from the Northern District of Texas.
About 800,000 people voted in Tarrant County in 2024. The cases announced Tuesday represent a small fraction of the ballots cast. Across the country, dozens of people are convicted of illegal voting each year, according to information presented in the broadcast report.
HSI and the FBI Dallas Field Office conducted the investigations with assistance from the Election Integrity Unit of the Texas Office of the Attorney General and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office.
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