Criminal charges were filed Thursday in Mower District Court against a couple accused of forging federal and state documents.
Maria Balderas-Lara, 32, and Jose Albert Estrada-Hernandez, 30, are each accused of aggravated forgery, a felony.
According to criminal complaints, Austin police searched the couple's home at 1510 Eighth St. S.E. on Thursday morning as part of an investigation into a false name that Balderas-Lara was reportedly using.
The complaints claim police found forged Social Security, state identification and Quality Pork Processors cards as well as Mexican documents inside the house. Balderas-Lara reportedly had documents under two aliases, and Estrada-Hernandez had documents under one alias.
Balderas-Lara is accused of four counts of felony aggravated forgery. Estrada-Hernandez is accused of two counts of aggravated forgery and one count of using writing for identification, which is also a felony.
ADVERTISEMENT
Balderas-Lara and Estrada-Hernandez appeared individually in court Thursday morning, where Judge Donald E. Rysavy set unconditional bail at $50,000 and conditional bail at $20,000, including that they turn over all false identification to law enforcement and cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
