Federal prosecutors announce new election-related charges nationwide, including a Missouri case involving allegations of illegal voting over two decades.
WASHINGTON, DC – October 13, 2026 (STL.News) DOJ – Charges – Election Crimes – The U.S. Department of Justice has announced federal election-related charges involving 16 individuals across 11 federal judicial districts, including a Missouri case in which prosecutors allege a noncitizen voted in at least 15 elections over approximately 20 years.
The charges, announced Monday, October 12, involve allegations of unlawful voting by noncitizens, false declarations of U.S. citizenship, voting more than once in the same election, attempting to vote using a deceased person’s absentee ballot, and violations involving the naturalization process.
The announcement represents another round of federal election-related prosecutions as the United States approaches the November 2026 midterm elections.
The cases involve alleged conduct in multiple states and elections, including the 2022 and 2024 federal elections. Some allegations extend much further back.
While the Justice Department has described the prosecutions as part of its efforts to enforce federal election laws, the announcement does not establish that the alleged offenses were coordinated or that they changed the outcome of any election.
All 16 individuals are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
DOJ Charges 16 in Election Crimes – Missouri Man Accused of Voting in at Least 15 Elections
Among the cases announced Monday is a prosecution in the Western District of Missouri involving Andre’s Garcia, 64, a Cuban national and lawful permanent resident.
Federal prosecutors allege Garcia registered to vote in 2004 and again in 2013, claiming to be a U.S. citizen despite knowing he was not.
According to the Justice Department, Garcia subsequently voted regularly over approximately two decades, participating in at least 15 elections, including at least 13 federal elections.
He has been charged with two counts of illegally voting in federal elections, specifically in November 2022 and November 2024.
The allegations raise questions about how an individual who was not legally eligible to vote could allegedly remain on voter registration records and participate in elections for an extended period.
The Justice Department’s announcement does not identify any specific administrative failures that allowed the alleged voting activity to continue. Nor does it establish whether election officials had previously received information that would have identified Garcia as ineligible.
Those distinctions matter because a criminal allegation against an individual does not automatically establish misconduct or negligence by election administrators.
Nevertheless, the Missouri prosecution illustrates the importance of accurate voter registration records, citizenship verification procedures, and mechanisms for identifying potential violations.
DOJ Charges 16 in Election Crimes – Pennsylvania Cases Involve Four Noncitizens
Federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced charges against four individuals accused of voting in the 2024 election despite not being U.S. citizens.
The defendants include Hacina Saadi, 48, a French national whom the Justice Department describes as unlawfully present in the United States.
Three other defendants are described as lawful permanent residents: Jamil Ahmad, 50, and Nighat Jamil, 47, both Pakistani nationals, and Paulo Silva, 54, a Portuguese national.
All four have been charged with voting by an alien.
Their immigration classifications differ, but the central legal issue is the same: lawful permanent residency does not grant an individual the right to vote in federal elections.
Federal voting eligibility generally requires U.S. citizenship and other applicable legal qualifications.
The Pennsylvania cases involve separate defendants, and the Justice Department’s announcement does not establish that they acted together.
DOJ Charges 16 in Election Crimes – Alabama and North Carolina Voting Allegations
Federal prosecutors also announced three cases involving Alabama elections.
In the Southern District of Alabama, Silvia Delgado Phelps, 78, a Peruvian national and lawful permanent resident, faces allegations that she voted in multiple Baldwin County elections despite not being a U.S. citizen.
Staciann Pollion Davis, 42, a Jamaican national and lawful permanent resident, is accused of voting in the November 2024 general election in Clarke County, Alabama.
Prosecutors charged both defendants through criminal complaints.
A separate case in the Northern District of Alabama involves Forrest Scott Woody, 68, of Hendersonville, North Carolina.
According to his indictment, Woody voted twice in the November 2024 general election.
Prosecutors allege he voted in Calhoun County, Alabama, after already voting in Henderson County, North Carolina.
Unlike the cases involving noncitizen voting, Woody’s prosecution concerns allegations of voting more than once in the same election.
The distinction shows that election-related crimes can take different forms, including alleged misconduct by otherwise eligible voters.
New Mexico Man Accused of Using Deceased Wife’s Ballot
In New Mexico, federal prosecutors have charged Patrick Perea, 62, with one count of fraudulent voting.
According to the Justice Department, Perea attempted to cast his deceased wife’s absentee ballot during the November 2024 general election.
Prosecutors allege he submitted the ballot to the Bernalillo County Clerk’s Office Bureau of Elections in Albuquerque.
The case highlights a separate category of election-related allegations involving absentee ballots and the identity of the person legally authorized to cast a vote.
The announcement does not establish whether the ballot was ultimately counted.
That question matters because submitting an unlawful ballot and having it counted are distinct factual issues.
Ohio Cases Raise Questions About Voter Registration
Federal prosecutors announced three Ohio cases involving allegations that noncitizens registered to vote and participated in elections.
In the Southern District of Ohio, Cary Ann Patterson, 59, a British national and lawful permanent resident, is accused of voting illegally in the November 2024 federal election.
According to the criminal complaint, the Gallia County Board of Elections received a voter registration card for Patterson in 2005 on which the citizenship question was answered affirmatively.
County election records reportedly show that Patterson voted in at least 10 elections while she was not a U.S. citizen.
In the Northern District of Ohio, prosecutors charged Arshed Zuberi, 69, a Pakistani national and lawful permanent resident.
The Justice Department alleges Zuberi registered to vote in September 2015 and August 2016 and signed forms declaring U.S. citizenship.
Prosecutors say election records indicate he voted in at least six elections.
Another Northern District of Ohio case involves Eliza M. Moss, 63, a Filipino national and lawful permanent resident.
Federal authorities allege Moss registered to vote in 2004 and again in 2023, signing forms that included citizenship declarations.
She allegedly participated in several primary and general elections.
According to the criminal complaint, Moss told investigators that someone who helped her register told her she could vote even though she was not a citizen.
That allegation raises another issue for investigators: whether an ineligible registrant acted knowingly, misunderstood the eligibility requirements, or received incorrect information from someone else.
Those circumstances may be relevant to the legal questions addressed during prosecution.
Additional Cases in Idaho, New Jersey, Hawaii and Kentucky
The October 12 announcement also identifies four additional prosecutions.
In Idaho, Stanley Walton, 82, a Canadian national and lawful permanent resident, faces a charge of unlawfully voting in the 2022 general election.
In New Jersey, Lizabeth Almonte Rosa, 24, a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from the Dominican Republic, has been charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and unlawfully procuring citizenship.
Federal authorities say Rosa was not a U.S. citizen when she registered to vote.
The allegations concern her citizenship status at the relevant time, not that naturalized U.S. citizens are generally ineligible to vote.
In Hawaii, Dawid Nalepa, 45, a Polish national, has been charged with unlawfully voting as an alien.
Prosecutors say Nalepa entered the United States around 2020 through the Visa Waiver Program, overstayed his authorized period, and then applied for permanent resident status.
He allegedly voted in the November 2024 general election despite understanding that he was not a U.S. citizen.
In Kentucky, Sandra Madeline Watson, 59, a Canadian national and lawful permanent resident, faces a federal charge alleging she knowingly voted in an election for federal office while not a U.S. citizen.
These cases further illustrate the range of immigration statuses and circumstances the federal prosecutions address.
DOJ Announced Another 16 Cases One Week Earlier
The October 12 announcement follows a separate Justice Department release on October 5 involving 16 noncitizens accused of election-related offenses.
That earlier announcement included cases in Florida, Louisiana, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
The Minnesota cases involved 10 defendants, while other prosecutions concerned alleged voting in federal elections and false claims of citizenship.
The Justice Department also announced charges and guilty pleas involving 12 individuals on September 28, including a case concerning the alleged disposal of approximately 300 mail-in ballots by a former postal carrier.
Together, these announcements show that federal prosecutors have pursued election-related allegations in multiple jurisdictions.
However, the announcements should not be interpreted as proof that prosecutors have established every allegation or that the defendants participated in a single nationwide scheme.
They also should not be used to estimate the overall prevalence of illegal voting without additional evidence.
The number of prosecutions announced during a particular period can reflect investigative priorities, the timing of charging decisions, and the grouping of previously developed cases.
What the Cases Mean for Election Security
The prosecutions raise several questions about how election systems verify voter eligibility and identify potentially unlawful activity.
One concern involves voter registration procedures that rely on applicants to certify their citizenship under penalty of law.
When an applicant makes a false declaration, election officials may not immediately identify the discrepancy.
Another concern involves voters who move between states and potentially remain associated with more than one voter registration record.
Maintaining accurate records across jurisdictions is an important part of election administration, although registration in more than one jurisdiction does not by itself establish that someone voted unlawfully.
Absentee voting presents different administrative challenges, including verifying that eligible voters submit ballots and preventing ballots from being cast on behalf of deceased individuals.
The Missouri and Ohio allegations are particularly relevant because prosecutors describe alleged voting activity extending across numerous elections.
If those allegations are proven, the cases could provide opportunities to examine how the conduct occurred and whether existing safeguards functioned as intended.
At the same time, criminal charges do not prove that election systems nationwide are compromised.
Determining how often illegal voting occurs requires broader evidence, including reliable data on confirmed violations, the number of ballots cast, and the results of election audits and investigations.
Federal Election Enforcement Continues
The Justice Department’s latest announcement arrives as election administration, voter eligibility, and public confidence remain significant national issues.
Federal law prohibits noncitizens from voting in elections for federal offices, subject to narrow statutory exceptions. Other laws address fraudulent registration, false citizenship claims, multiple voting, and related offenses.
Federal prosecutors must establish the elements of each charged offense, including any required knowledge or intent.
For the defendants identified in the October 12 announcement, the next significant developments will come through the federal court system.
Those proceedings may include initial appearances, arraignments, pretrial motions, negotiated pleas, or trials.
The Justice Department’s release does not provide a complete procedural schedule or final disposition for each case.
The allegations also underscore an important distinction between discovering potential misconduct and proving a criminal offense.
Investigations may identify discrepancies in registration records or voting histories, but prosecutors must still establish the relevant facts and legal requirements in court.
Missouri Case Could Draw Additional Scrutiny
For Missouri residents, the allegations involving Andre’s Garcia are among the most significant elements of the announcement.
Federal prosecutors contend that Garcia participated in at least 15 elections despite not being a U.S. citizen, including at least 13 federal elections.
If proven, that history would raise legitimate questions about how the alleged activity continued for so long without resulting in earlier criminal enforcement.
But the answers will depend on evidence about the registration process, the records available to election officials, and the circumstances of each alleged violation.
The Justice Department has not established that Missouri election officials knowingly permitted unlawful voting or that the alleged ballots changed an election result.
The broader national cases similarly warrant careful examination without treating allegations as convictions.
Ultimately, the prosecutions will test the government’s evidence in individual cases while drawing attention to the systems designed to protect voter eligibility and election integrity.
The Justice Department’s October 12 announcement identifies 16 defendants, but the courts will ultimately determine the legal outcomes. Every defendant remains presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
