The Trump administration’s crackdown on supposed noncitizen voting led to 11 people being arrested in California, one of whom was a 72-year-old man who says he has never voted in a U.S. election.
Omar Muñoz, who was born in Belize, told Fox 11 Los Angeles that he is a legal permanent resident of the U.S. and has never registered to vote. Federal prosecutors, however, claim that he illegally registered to vote in Los Angeles County in 2019 and voted in four elections.
“No, I didn’t register to vote,” Muñoz told the TV station. He was not expecting to be arrested for anything. “I looked around and said, ‘I’m not a killer.’”
NEW: One of 11 people arrested in California’s voter fraud crackdown tells me he ever registered to vote or cast a ballot. Omar Muñoz, 72, says someone may have used his identity. Federal prosecutors allege he registered and voted in four elections. https://t.co/QRD627yHnx
— Matthew Seedorff (@MattSeedorff) October 21, 2026
Muñoz said he could be a victim of identity theft, as someone once used his name and Social Security number to work in a chocolate factory. But the Department of Justice’s lists of noncitizen voters have been full of errors, particularly in Los Angeles County.
Last week, the DOJ sent a list of 20,000 purported noncitizens who are registered to vote to county election officials as well as California’s secretary of state. But in a court filing, county officials attested that the list was inaccurate, with only 7,000 people on it actually having Los Angeles County addresses. On top of that, it appeared to contain a lot of U.S.-born citizens.
The Trump administration is clearly sowing chaos and fear ahead of November’s midterm elections. The president’s underlings have demanded voter rolls from every state, taking legal action when states refuse. Acting on MAGA’s conspiracy theories, they’ve seized voting machines and ballots. Muñoz appears to be an innocent bystander in their efforts.
“Politics is a nice chess game if you know how to play. Unfortunately, they used me as one of their props,” Muñoz told Fox 11.