Dae Wahn Ahn, 49, from Diamond Bar and 47-year-old Chong Hwan Kim from Norwalk were arrested Wednesday in Los Angeles.
They are accused of using altered Canadian passports and legitimate Social Security numbers to obtain valid California driver's licenses for illegal aliens from Asia who traveled to Kern County.
The arrests were the result of a 17-month probe by a multi-agency task force, including U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement and Bakersfield DMV investigators. Investigators said the suspects recruited clients through advertisements in Korean newspapers and by word of mouth.
Investigators said the scheme charged clients $3,500 to $5,000 to obtain the licenses and estimated that more than 200 foreign nationals from Korea and China may have exploited the scheme.
"With these arrests and continued enforcement actions, our message is clear- activities related to fraudulently obtaining a California driver's license simply will not be tolerated," said George Valverde, director of the California DMV.
Ahn and Kim were arraigned in Bakersfield Thursday on multiple felony counts. The two suspects are both Korean nationals who are in the U.S. illegally after overstaying their original visas.
