Immigration scam: Norma Olga Benavidez was convicted and sentenced for victimizing those seeking legal status.
Eighth Judicial District Court Judge Stefany Miley sentenced Benavidez to 28 to 72 months in prison. She was also ordered to pay more than $53,000 in restitution to 11 different victims and $3,500 in investigative and prosecution costs.
Benavidez told victims that she would help them with paperwork related to their lawful status as immigrants in the US in exchange for exorbitant fees, sometimes totaling more than $50,000. However, according to the Nevada Attorney General’s office, Benavidez could not and never did perform the services she promised.
Benavidez, 60, falsely claimed to be a federal government employee who worked closely with a person she identified as the “Chief of Immigration,” according to a news release from the Nevada attorney general’s office. This person was fictitious and did not actually exist. It was just part of the story she told to unsuspecting people willing to pay tens of thousands of dollars to be short-tracked through the US immigration system to become American citizens.