Reported / Citable
FORT WORTH, Texas — United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould announced that seven non‑citizens have been charged for unlawfully voting in federal elections or falsely claiming United States citizenship.
Six defendants were indicted on Sept. 10, while the seventh was charged by criminal complaint on Sept. 11. Federal agents arrested one defendant on Sept. 11 and five defendants on Sept.14. One fugitive defendant surrendered to federal authorities today.
“Federal elections belong to American citizens—period,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould. “When individuals who are not citizens cast ballots or falsely claim citizenship, they violate federal law, undermine the integrity of our electoral process and erode the public’s confidence in the fairness of our elections. These charges send a clear message: We will enforce the law. We will hold offenders accountable. And we will safeguard the voting process for the citizens it is meant to serve.”
“Election integrity is a national security priority, and HSI will continue working with our federal, state, and local partners to investigate violations that threaten public confidence in our electoral process,” said HSI Dallas acting Deputy Special Agent in Charge Judy Pardo. “These charges reflect HSI’s commitment to enforcing federal law, protecting the rights of U.S. citizens, and ensuring that only those legally eligible participate in American elections.”
“Americans have a right to expect free and fair elections. This includes ensuring that the only people who vote in our elections are in fact eligible to vote,” said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. “The FBI will continue to work with our partners to thoroughly investigate any allegation of voter fraud or other election crimes.”
The seven non-citizens are charged with the following offenses:
Helen Sayen Adams, is a 67-year-old citizen of Nigeria and lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder) since May 2024, is charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. Adams allegedly falsely claimed U.S. citizenship on a Texas Voter Registration Application in June 2024 and voted in the November 2024 general election in Tarrant County. She later admitted she was not a U.S. citizen. Joshua Nmelichukwu Akpom, is a 27-year-old citizen of Nigeria and lawful permanent resident since 2016, charged with false statements in relation to naturalization. As alleged, Akpom falsely denied on his 2026 naturalization application that he had ever claimed U.S. citizenship, registered to vote, or voted, despite registering in 2017 and voting in the 2018 general election. Due to the five‑year statute of limitations, prosecutors relied on the naturalization offense rather than the voting conduct. Carlos Salas Barrios, is a 41-year-old Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident since 2018, charged by complaint with allegedly voting by an Alien in a Federal Election. Barrios unlawfully cast a provisional ballot in Tarrant County in the November 2024 general election despite not being a U.S. citizen and not being registered. Although the ballot was ultimately rejected, casting it was still unlawful under Texas and federal law. Khalwinder Singh Bhengura, is a 69-year-old citizen of India and lawful permanent resident since 2022, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. Bhengura falsely claimed U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in January 2024 and again when applying for a Texas driver license later that year in August. He voted in the November 2024 general election and later admitted he knew he was not a citizen. He was arrested on Sept. 11. Celestin Katubadi, is a 20-year-old citizen of the Democratic Republic of Congo and lawful permanent resident, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to vote. Katubadi cast a provisional ballot in Tarrant County during the November 2024 general election after falsely claiming U.S. citizenship on an affidavit of provisional voter. Although his ballot was rejected, casting it was still unlawful Texas and federal law. Rocio Thrasher, is a 38-year-old Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident since 2017, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. According to the indictment, Thrasher allegedly falsely declared U.S. citizenship when registering in June 2024 and voted in the November 2024 general election. She later admitted knowing she was not a citizen. Moises Anwar Arellano‑Alba, is a 36-year-old illegal alien from Mexico ordered deported in July, charged with voting by an alien in a federal election and false statement of citizenship in order to register to vote. He allegedly falsely claimed U.S. citizenship when applying for a Texas driver license in 2023 and voted early in the 2024 general election in Dallas County despite being a non‑citizen and convicted felon. He admitted in immigration proceedings that he had voted. Arellano‑Alba was a fugitive until this morning when he surrendered himself to federal agents. These are not isolated incidents in North Texas. On the same day these several noncitizens were indicted, Eliseo Morales-Tapia, an illegal alien from Mexico, was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison for aggravated identity theft, identity theft, voting by an alien in a federal election and false statements of citizenship.
HSI and FBI Dallas field offices conducted the investigations with assistance from the Election Integrity Unit of the Texas Office of the Attorney General and the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Capoccia from the Fort Worth Division is prosecution the case.
Indictments and complaints are allegations and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
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Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office — Northern District of Texas — U.S. Department of Justice press release.