VOTER FRAUD: Three Non U.S. Citizens Charged

The Division of Criminal Investigation says three western Iowa residents have been charged with election misconduct.

The DCI says it was asked to look into allegations of voter fraud in Pottawattamie County by the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office in August. The office provided information showing they’d compared the voter rolls with a list of known foreign national persons in the Iowa Department of Transportation’s driver’s license database.

Two Canadian citizens and one Mexican citizen were identified.

Albert Harte-Maxwell and Linda Harte-Maxwell, who reside in Council Bluffs but are Canadian citizens, were found to have voted in general and city elections they were not authorized to do so. The Harte-Maxwells told a DCI investigator they thought they could vote in any election except the presidential election.

Maria Ayon-Fernandez is a Lawful Permanent Resident of the U.S. but retains Mexican citizenship. She told a DCI agent that she was a U.S. citizen but was unable to provide proof. The investigation showed Ayon-Fernandez, who lives in Council Bluffs, voted in the 2010 general election.

When registering to vote all three falsely claimed to be U.S. citizens.

All three turned themselves into law enforcement Thursday. They were booked into the Pottawattamie County Jail and then released on their own recognizance.