Five lawful permanent residents from the Capital Region and North Country appeared Oct. 13 and 14 to face federal charges of voting in elections involving federal offices, according to an Oct. 16 news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of New York.
Federal complaints allege that each defendant knew they were not a U.S. citizen and knowingly voted in an election held partly to choose a candidate for president, vice president, U.S. senator or U.S. representative.
Those charged are Vikki Bradt, 51, a British national from Ballston Spa; Samantha Merkle, 55, a British national from Glens Falls; Suad Sasic, 30, a Bosnian national from Clifton Park; Jacques Patry, 64, a Canadian national from Tupper Lake; and Paula Stitt, 57, a Canadian national from Albany.
The department identified the shared federal charge as voting by aliens.
If convicted, each defendant could face a maximum of one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. A judge would determine any sentence under the applicable law, federal sentencing guidelines and other factors.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney John Sarcone announced the charges with Anthony Patrone, acting special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations' Buffalo Field Office. Sarcone described the alleged voting as occurring in federal elections within the past few years and said his office would pursue such cases with federal law enforcement partners. Patrone said HSI was investigating the alleged conduct as part of its work on election integrity.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Belliss and Benjamin Loefke are prosecuting the cases.
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