Fredrick Antonio Waters, 47, has been charged with obstruction of official proceedings and making a false statement, as announced by U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, Leigha Simonton.
Waters was indicted last week on one count each of obstruction of official proceedings and false statement. He was arrested on Thursday and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Harris Toliver on Friday.
According to the indictment, on February 8, 2022, Waters disclosed to an individual that she was the target of a criminal investigation. When questioned by a Special Agent with Homeland Security Investigations about this disclosure, Waters allegedly responded by falsely claiming, "No I was looking up a humanitarian case and typed in the wrong Alien number." The indictment alleges that Waters knowingly used an Alien number issued to a specific individual to check if she appeared as a subject in any Department of Homeland Security investigative system.
An indictment is an accusation of criminal conduct and does not constitute evidence. Waters is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
If convicted, Waters could face up to 25 years in federal prison.
The investigation was conducted by the Homeland Security Investigations – Office of Professional Responsibility – El Paso office.
