Officer charged with lying about citizenship

The grand jury returned an indictment charging 37-year-old Marco Antonio De La Garza with three counts related to passport fraud and false statements on his federal law enforcement background application on Wednesday.

De La Garza is a Mexican citizen who used a fraudulently obtained Texas birth certificate to apply for a United States passport.

De La Garza used the same birth certificate to assert United States citizenship on his five-year background check to maintain employment as a United States Customs and Border Protection Officer.

An indictment is a method by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Department of State-Diplomatic Security Service and the Department of Homeland Security-Office of Inspector General.

The prosecution is being handled by Lori Price and Heather Siegele, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, District of Arizona.