Six non-citizens accused of illegal voting in California

The Department of Justice announced on Monday that six non-citizens face criminal charges for registering and voting in California.

The six individuals were identified by their nationalities and ages: a 43-year-old Filipino man from Palmdale, a 31-year-old Mexican woman from Palmdale, a 35-year-old Israeli woman from West Hills, a 52-year-old Canadian man from Agua Dulce, a 35-year-old Iranian man from Canoga Park, and a 46-year-old Mexican man from Palmdale.

Prosecutors stated that each accused person made false statements on their naturalization applications. These arrests are part of a federal initiative called Protect the Vote, which is being conducted alongside California federal prosecutors.

Bill Essayli, the first deputy U.S. attorney, said his office is filing charges against six more non-citizens for illegally registering and voting. He noted that 34 people have now been charged under this operation. Essayli added that every name on the current list was provided to California election authorities.

Five of the six accused have been taken into custody. Their initial court appearances are scheduled at the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. The Department of Justice did not provide a specific date for the sixth accused's appearance.

If found guilty of making false statements in their citizenship applications, each defendant faces a maximum prison sentence of five years in federal custody. None of the six accused have been found guilty as of this report.

This action follows the announcement on October 19 of 11 similar arrests. Separately, the Trump administration filed an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court on Monday to exclude roughly 20,000 questionable mail-in votes in California. This move came one day before the midterm elections, after a federal appeals court rejected the government's request to remove those votes pending citizenship verification.