PROVIDENCE, R.I.—A Dominican man authorities say removed his own fingerprints in an effort to hide his identity has pleaded guilty to re-entering the U.S. illegally following his deportation.
Robert Cordero-Luciano was ordered held at a hearing Wednesday in Rhode Island pending sentencing in March. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison followed by deportation.
Prosecutors say the 26-year-old man was arrested last summer when he tried to get to a Rhode Island driver's license using forged documents. Police noticed his fingerprints had been "mutilated."
Using facial recognition technology, police determined Cordero-Luciano had acquired four different Massachusetts driver's licenses under different names and Social Security numbers. He was deported in 2006 after serving time on a drug conviction, but returned to the U.S. about two months later.
