3 Plead Guilty in Tennessee Driver’s License Fraud Case
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MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Three of four men charged in a Tennessee driver’s license fraud case pleaded guilty Monday in federal court.
The defendants were arrested Feb. 5 along with Katherine Smith, 49, a Tennessee driver’s license examiner who died five days later in a car fire authorities say was intentionally set.
Mostafa Said Abou-Shahin, Khaled Odtllah and Sakher A. Hammad each admitted Monday that they tried to obtain licenses illegally. The fourth defendant, Abdelmuhsen Mahmid Hammad, was to appear in court Monday afternoon.
Defense lawyers have said the men traveled to Memphis from New York because they heard it was easy to get driver’s licenses in Tennessee, where Social Security numbers are not required.
The FBI investigated whether the men were linked to terrorists, but prosecutor Tim DiScenza said Monday there was “no proof of any terrorist activity.”
Sentencing for the men is scheduled for June 27. Prosecutors have recommended leniency.
The men face a maximum of five years in prison.
After almost a monthlong investigation, the Tennessee Highway Patrol determined that Smith’s death was not caused by the wreck but by “other means.”
No one has been charged in her death, which wasn’t mentioned in court Monday.
A fifth defendant, Mohammed A. Fares, pleaded guilty earlier this month.
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