According to police, an adult Venezuelan migrant and father pretended to be a 16-year-old boy in order to enroll in an Ohio high school, and even participated in two sports with children nearly a decade his junior.
Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra is accused of falsely presenting himself as an unaccompanied minor and enrolling at Perrysburg High School, southwest of Toledo, in January of last year — and duping a family into taking him in, according to police.
When he first contacted the school in November 2023, he allegedly claimed to have been trafficked to the United States from Venezuela and that his birthday was December 2, 2007, according to police documents obtained by 13 ABC.
However, prosecutors say he is a 24-year-old Venezuelan national with children in the United States.
He told school officials his name was Anthony Labrador, according to a letter sent to parents and community members by Perrysburg Schools Superintendent Thomas Hosler.
Sierra had been enrolled at the school for 14 months when school officials contacted the Perrysburg Police Division on Monday about possible fraudulent activity involving one of their students, according to a statement released on Tuesday.
Cops opened a fraud case and referred it to the Detective Bureau for investigation.
“Through our investigation and working with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, it was discovered that Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra, a 24-year-old from Venezuela, had used fraudulent documents to enroll in Perrysburg Schools, and was posing as a 17-year-old high school student,” a statement read.
Sierra lived with a Perrysburg family after being granted guardianship by the Wood County Juvenile Court, according to Hosler.
The family became suspicious of Sierra’s true age and contacted the school, claiming to have received information that he was, in fact, a 24-year-old man, according to Hosler’s letter.
According to police documents, Sierra’s child’s mother allegedly contacted his oblivious guardians on May 14 and claimed he was 24 years old, sending them photos and documents, including an Ohio driver’s license under his real name with a March 27, 2001 birth date.
Sierra denied the allegations when confronted by school officials, citing his birth certificate, which would have made him 17 on May 14.
However, the school district instructed Sierra’s guardians to keep him off school grounds while they investigated.
Sierra smirked at the camera as he appeared in Perrysburg Municipal Court on Tuesday afternoon via video from the Wood County Jail, where his name was listed as Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra.
A judge set his bond at $50,000 and prohibited him from leaving Wood County.
He will also have to wear an ankle monitor and stay two miles from Perrysburg High School.
When asked where he would live if released, he stated that he would stay with a woman named Emily with whom he has children.
According to WTOL 11, school district officials discovered social media posts by people claiming to be Sierra’s real family, exposing his alleged scam.
Sierra participated in the school’s swimming and soccer programs during her time there, according to Hosler.
According to court records, he allegedly applied for and received various documents while attending school, including a driver’s license, a Social Security number, and federal Temporary Protective Status from the US Immigration Department.
Sierra is also said to have completed a visa application with the assistance of Advocating Opportunities, a nonprofit organization that provides free legal services.
Sierra’s charges may result in deportation because he is not a US citizen, according to prosecutors.
Police are investigating what prosecutors described as “questionable material” discovered at Sierra’s residence, as well as alleged school-related issues.
Sierra pleaded not guilty on Tuesday and will be represented by a public defender.