Man Convicted of Living More Than 40 Years in the U.S. Under the Identity of a Baby Who Died
A federal jury found Vidal Blanco-Blas used a dead U.S.-citizen infant’s name to get a Social Security number, a Texas license and a passport.
A man from Mexico who prosecutors say spent more than 40 years in the United States under the name of an American baby who died in infancy has been convicted of passport fraud and aggravated identity theft.
A federal jury convicted Vidal Blanco-Blas, 62, on both counts on Oct. 16, 2026, after a three-day trial and about two hours of deliberation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas said on Oct. 21, 2026. A grand jury had indicted him in October 2024 in case No. 3:24-cr-00419.
The identity of a 3-month-old
According to evidence at trial, Blanco-Blas entered the U.S. more than 40 years ago using the identity of Julio Cesar Torres, a U.S. citizen who died in Mexico when he was about 3 months old, prosecutors said. Using that identity, Blanco-Blas obtained a Social Security number, a Texas driver’s license, a voter registration card and a U.S. passport.
Witnesses testified that he kept up the false identity in his family life, too. He told his daughter to say in public that he was her “uncle,” Julio Cesar Torres, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Prior drug convictions under the stolen name
Prosecutors said Blanco-Blas has a significant criminal history in the U.S. He was previously sentenced to 84 months for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, 120 months for possession of marijuana, and 21 months for possession with intent to distribute up to 30 kilograms of marijuana, all under the stolen identity, according to the office.
How it unraveled
The identity held until April 11, 2023, when he applied to renew the passport in Greenville, Texas, prosecutors said. Through “advancements in investigative techniques,” the U.S. Department of State learned of the fraud and found his true identity, the office said. The release does not describe those techniques.
The State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service investigated, with help from the Social Security Administration’s inspector general and the State Department’s National Passport Center.
What happens next
Blanco-Blas faces up to 12 years in federal prison, prosecutors said. U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay set sentencing for March 22, 2027.
