KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Two people, a married couple, were sentenced after prosecutors said they conspired to make and sell around 100 fake Tennessee driver's licenses and identification cards.
According to a release, Cheryl Huff was sentenced to 37 months in prison followed by a year of supervised release. Her husband, Mario Paz-Mejia, was sentenced to 30 months in prison followed by a year of supervised release.
They pleaded guilty to conspiring to make fake IDs for people who were not legally allowed to have them. Huff was a District Manager in the Knoxville area for the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, which issues driver's licenses and ID cards at Driver Service Centers across the state.
In a release, prosecutors said her husband recruited people who were neither U.S. citizens nor residents of Tennessee, who wanted to get a Tennessee ID. The release said his customers would need to pay around $2,500 for the documents.
The release said Paz-Meija also helped his customers get false citizenship and residency documents, such as fake lease agreements and fake birth certifications and social security cards. It also said Huff either knew or "deliberately ignored a high probability" that her husband was helping people get fake documents.
It also said she used her access to internal state software to confirm that the names and information on fake documents could be used to get driver's licenses and ID cards.
"For example, on June 23, 2021, Paz-Mejia texted Huff the name, date of birth, and personal information used on false identification documents, asking Huff to 'check that please.' Huff responded, 'All of these are not on file. They’re good,'" the release said.
After getting fake citizenship and residency documents, Paz-Meija would meet them at a Knoxville Driver Service Center before business hours and escort them in through an employee-only entrance. Once inside, prosecutors said Huff started driver's license applications using TDSHS software.
It also said she told employees to complete applications and issue licenses to many of Paz-Mejia's customers.