LANCASTER, S.C. -- Federal and state agents arrested a 36-year-old man Tuesday for his involvement in the sale of fraudulent identification documents.
Prudencio Sorcia Cervantes was arrested without incident at his home on Lynwood Drive in Lancaster. A spokeswoman for the South Carolina Department of Public Safety said immigration enforcement agents served the arrest warrants.
"They had the house surrounded. Treated him like a full blown criminal," said Pat Gibson, who worked with Cervantes. "He didn't know he was doing anything illegal."
According to state agents, Cervantes' arrest was the result of an investigation sparked by an incident at the Lancaster County Department of Motor Vehicles two weeks ago. Authorities said a woman was arrested after she tried to use fake documents to obtain a real driver's license.
"He never sold nobody nothing," said Corey Stevens, a friend of Cervantes. Gibson agreed.
"He did someone a favor. A friend asked him if he knew some way to help his girlfriend get the right papers for I.D. so she could get a job. He didn't know, but said he knew someone who might know."
Cervantes' wife told NBC Charlotte that her husband, a father of four, was on the proper track to becoming a citizen legally and would not do anything to jeopardize his progress. She admitted she did not know the details of the case, though, and said she hoped to learn more in the coming days.
State agents said more charges are expected.
