24-Year-Old Man Arrested For Posing As Teen To Enroll In Ohio High School

 

A 24-year-old Venezuelan man was arrested in Ohio after allegedly using forged documents to pose as a teenager and attend high school for over a year before his true identity was exposed, authorities said.

Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra enrolled at Perrysburg High School in January 2024, presenting a Venezuelan birth certificate that claimed he was 16 years old. He told school officials he was a homeless migrant who had been trafficked into the United States, according to an incident report from the Perrysburg Police Division.

After enrolling, Labrador Sierra was placed with a local family experienced in hosting exchange students. That family was granted both temporary and later permanent guardianship in 2024 and assisted him in obtaining a Social Security number and a driver’s license.

According to school officials, Labrador Sierra also used forged documents to apply for and receive Temporary Protected Status (TPS) through U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. TPS grants certain migrants protection from deportation and eligibility for legal employment.

Questions about his identity arose on May 14, when a woman contacted the guardian family. She claimed that Labrador Sierra was not a teenager but a 24-year-old man — and the father of her child. She provided photos of official identification with his name and a birthdate of March 27, 2001, as well as images from social media that showed them together, including photos of him with a child.

That evening, the guardians alerted the school district. The next day, administrators confronted Labrador Sierra, who denied the allegation and insisted that his submitted birth certificate — which listed him as 17 — was legitimate.

As the investigation progressed, the district discovered social media posts from individuals claiming to be Labrador Sierra’s relatives. One such post, from a woman believed to be his mother, featured a picture of him in a Perrysburg soccer uniform, captioned “Happy birthday son,” and dated March 27 — the same birthdate as the one on the ID shared by the woman who initially contacted the guardians.

Police contacted U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which confirmed Labrador Sierra’s work visa had expired in 2023, the same year he enrolled at the school. CBP said he was considered an overstay and no longer had legal immigration status.

Labrador Sierra was arrested during a traffic stop on Monday. He was riding in a vehicle driven by the same woman who had originally contacted the guardian family. He was taken into custody on a warrant for forgery.

He was arraigned on Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to the fifth-degree felony charge. His bond was set at $50,000, and his next court appearance is scheduled for May 29. Federal charges may also follow.

According to CBP, an immigration detainer has been placed on him, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is also involved. A Department of Homeland Security official called the case “disturbing,” and confirmed Labrador Sierra’s Venezuelan origin.

Perrysburg Schools described the situation as “highly unusual” but said they followed appropriate legal procedures to support someone who appeared to be an unaccompanied minor.