Facial recognition scans lead to indictment

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A scan by facial recognition software has led to the indictment of a Burnsville resident on a charge of unlawfully re-entering the U.S. after having been deported as a criminal.

The Star Tribune reports the state has been using massive database scans to root out identity fraud since 2008.

In this case, the scans found a strong resemblance between an Eduardo Sein who got a Minnesota ID card in 1999 and a Gerardo Jimenez-Sanchez who got a driver’s permit in 2008. Immigration and Customs Enforcement then ran the information through a national criminal database.

The search revealed Jimenez-Sanchez was deported after a 1997 felony cocaine possession conviction in California. He was tracked down in Minnesota and arrested. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison and deportation.