A 46-year-old Belizean woman living in Florida faces up to a decade in American federal prison and the loss of her U.S. citizenship after being convicted of Naturalization Fraud.
On Monday a federal jury in Orlando found Ana Zahia Gonzalez, originally of Belize and recently residing in Winter Garden, Florida, guilty of lying to federal authorities to secure her American status.
The trial revealed that in 2006 Gonzalez entered the United States on a visitor visa and never left, overstaying her time. In 2011, while still married to a man in Belize, Gonzalez married a US citizen. The court heard that her American husband had no idea she was still legally wed in her home country. During her application for U.S. citizenship, Gonzalez submitted a fraudulent Belizean divorce decree. She swore to immigration officials that her marriage in Belize had been legally dissolved before her remarriage in the States.
While not explicitly detailed in the sentencing phase, the loss of citizenship typically leads to deportation following the completion of a prison sentence.
Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 13, in an Orlando federal courtroom.
