Arkansas AG sues 'notaria' for selling fake IDs to undocumented immigrants

Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel during a speech at the University of Arkansas. (ArkansasAG.gov)

Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel is suing a North Little Rock woman for allegedly deceiving immigrants by selling ID cards advertised as legal identification and deceptively advertising herself as a "notaria" without disclosing that she isn't a licensed attorney.

McDaniel says Micaela Hernandez and her business - M. Hernandez Multiservices - are violating the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and the Arkansas Notario Act by selling $70 ID cards that she advertised as being valid for four years and legally acceptable as a secondary form of identification. She also failed to list in Spanish and English that she is not a licensed attorney.

"Many of those who promote themselves as notarios exploit the trust of consumers who believe them to be licensed attorneys who can assist with immigration services," McDaniel told local media. "In Arkansas and across the country, consumers have lost both their money and their opportunity for aid because they've fallen victim to notario schemes. Others have bought useless ID cards that are not legally recognized. These actions are unacceptable in the consumer marketplace."

A phone call to Hernandez was not immediately returned.

McDaniel says Hernandez promotes herself as a notario - leading many Spanish customers to believe she's an attorney who can assist with immigration services. McDaniel says Hernandez is not a licensed attorney and fails to provide that information as is required by law.

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McDaniel also says ID cards she sells are not an official form of ID and she charged at least 30 Arkansas consumers the $70 fee for ID cards that cannot be used despite her assurances that they can.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.