A Honduran national has received a federal prison sentence of two years and one month for crimes related to identity theft and fraud, as well as making a false claim of U.S. citizenship for employment purposes. Juan Ariel Molina-Salles, age 35, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven and will serve this federal sentence consecutively with a 12-year state sentence for an unrelated charge. Molina-Salles had entered a guilty plea on September 15, as detailed in a U.S. Department of Justice announcement.
Documents from the court reveal that Molina-Salles fraudulently attained employment with Archer Western-de Moya Group Joint Venture II, a company that uses E-Verify, a system to confirm employee eligibility. Representing himself as a U.S. citizen, he utilized another individual's identification to subvert E-Verify's system. On February 16, 2022, he filled out an I-9 form and did not provide any proof of his qualifications for operating heavy construction machinery.
The circumstances took a tragic turn on the night of September 22, 2022. While working on a highway construction site in Pinellas County under a stolen identity, Molina-Salles was operating a front-end loader when he struck and killed Deputy Michael Hartwick of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. In the immediate aftermath, rather than assisting at the scene, Molina-Salles tried to cover his involvement by giving his construction helmet and safety vest to another worker and instructed that they be disposed of before he fled the site. His arrest followed on September 23, 2022.
Multiple law enforcement and governmental agencies participated in the investigation that led to Molina-Salles's conviction, including Homeland Security Investigations, the Department of Transportation – Office of Inspector General, and the Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General, among others. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray, which resulted in the recent sentencing outcome.
