Filipino lawyer faces 20 years jail term in US

A Filipino lawyer faces 20-year jail term after New York police arrested for defrauding at least 50 clients for filing fake immigration documents and practicing without license, the Fipinoreporter.com reported on Tuesday. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District reported that Larry R. Valorozo, 43, who was practicing immigration law, is detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Manhattan, New York. Valorozo, a native of Tuguegarao City, Cagayan, Philippines resides at Staten Island, New York. He was arrested in Miami, Florida, while attending classes at St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami Gardens. New York authorities said the Filipino lawyer was indicted on Dec. 20, 2005 on eight counts of mail fraud and 24 counts of signing false immigration documents under penalty of perjury and another 25 counts of presenting false immigration documents. Assistant U.S. Attorney John A. Nathanson said Valorozo was transported to New York in January and the judge who heard his case did not set a bail. Nathanson also said Valorozo’s illegal practice caught the attention of authorities some two years ago after alleged victims contacted the police, Valorozo. Based on court documents, Valorozo, who claimed to have earned his law degree from the University of the East in Manila, represented himself falsely as an attorney in all forms he submitted to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and deceived dozens of victims who wanted to obtain legal status in the United States of as much as $8,000 each. –GMANews.TV