Federal prosecutors announce arrests of non-citizens accused of illegal voting across California and other states

Federal prosecutors announced charges against multiple non-citizens across several states accused of voting illegally in recent U.S. elections, including the 2024 presidential election.

Six people were arrested in California from Fresno, Kings, Sacramento, Solano, Stanislaus and Tulare counties, all accused of illegally voting in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Among those in KCRA 3's coverage area are Rosa Bento Silva Anderson, 26, a Portuguese national residing in Turlock, who will make her initial appearance in federal court on Nov. 2 in Fresno; Janelyn Stewart, 38, a Philippine national residing in Vallejo; and Meryll Joy Quirong Costi, 36, a Philippine national residing in Sacramento, also accused of illegally voting in the Nov. 8, 2022, midterm election, with her initial appearance scheduled for Nov. 2 in Sacramento. A 68-year-old Sacramento resident charged previously told KCRA 3 he had thought he was eligible to vote because he had a REAL ID.

Separately, two New York state residents - Pooja Pawse, 31, of Lake Placid, and Mobin Tora Kheil, 33, of Troy - each face federal voting fraud charges for voting without being U.S. citizens. Both are legal permanent residents. In Tennessee, Cesar Sanchez Correa, 44, a Mexican citizen, faces one count of unlawful voting for voting in Haywood County during the 2024 election, while Andreas Van Der Werf, 62, a German citizen, faces two counts for voting in Fayette County in both the 2022 and 2024 elections. In Georgia, Benito Covarrubias Iniguez, 64, of Winder faces a charge of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote.

The announcements come as the Trump administration appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court after an appeals court rejected a request to set aside 20,000 ballots from people the federal government suspects may not be citizens. Federal law restricts voting in elections featuring candidates for president, vice president, the U.S. Senate, or the U.S. House of Representatives strictly to U.S. citizens. Those convicted of illegal voting face a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. According to a legal filing by an immigrant-rights group, more than 4 in 10 names on the list flagged as possible noncitizen voters in California could not be found on the state's voter rolls.