2026年9月30日 美国东部时间下午2:06 / 福克斯新闻
司法部长托德·布兰奇表示，自特朗普就职以来，司法部已以选民欺诈罪名起诉了90多人
作者：詹姆斯·西罗内
司法部长托德·布兰奇周三宣布，一个联邦大陪审团已起诉10名合法永久居民，他们被控在包括该州2026年8月初选在内的多场明尼苏达州选举中非法投票或企图非法投票。
这10名被告最初来自利比里亚、加拿大、南非、巴西、波斯尼亚、德国、加纳和立陶宛，他们涉嫌向选举官员撒谎，谎称自己是美国公民，以便登记投票。
根据法庭记录，他们被指控在2022年和2024年的大选中投票。
“选民欺诈侵蚀了公众对我们选举制度的信任，而我们尽一切努力恢复这种信任对我们的民主进程至关重要，”布兰奇在宣布指控的新闻发布会上说道。
联邦大陪审团在明尼苏达州就相关问题提起公诉，一些民主党人称此类情况从未发生过：这里是欺诈的温床
“司法部恢复这种信任的最基本方式，就是努力确保在美国选举中投票的只有符合资格的美国公民。”
2026年9月30日，在华盛顿特区举行的新闻发布会上，司法部长托德·布兰奇与美国国土安全部部长马克韦恩·穆林和美国检察官丹尼尔·罗森一同发言，宣布逮捕10名涉嫌在明尼苏达州选举中非法投票的人员。
这10名被告被分别起诉。他们分别是：61岁的利比里亚人巴托尔·科纳·布莱恩特；59岁的立陶宛人埃德维尔·瓦伊多托·埃德蒙兹；63岁的加纳人约书亚·弗雷德里克·科菲·埃齐；48岁的利比里亚人艾伦·巴布·卡格博；78岁的德国人保罗·克拉斯；58岁的波斯尼亚人法迪勒·拉西姆·奥泽戈维奇；62岁的巴西人阿帕雷西多·多尼泽蒂·帕多万；43岁的利比里亚人克里斯·亚当·佩蒂夸伊；47岁的加拿大人克里斯蒂安·利亚姆·申克；以及69岁的南非人赫斯特·索菲亚·韦曼。
布莱恩特似乎是唯一一名未被指控非法投票的被告，仅被指控在2024年登记投票时虚假声称拥有公民身份。
以虚假公民身份主张进行投票属于重罪，最高可判处五年监禁和25万美元罚款；而非公民投票则属于轻罪，最高可判处一年监禁和10万美元罚款。
布兰奇还对媒体迄今为止未认真对待司法部起诉选举欺诈案件的工作表示不满。
国土安全调查局的官员站在48岁的利比里亚国民艾伦·巴布·卡格博两侧，他被指控在2024年大选中非法投票。
拜登政府在一名女性2024年非法投票数月前为其颁发了绿卡：国土安全部
“我不知道多少起案件才能让你们媒体重视。不管是106起，还是120起，”他在谈及 hypothetical的调查数量时说道，“在某个节点，这对媒体来说必须变得有意义。”
布兰奇表示，自唐纳德·特朗普总统再次就职以来，司法部已以选民欺诈罪名起诉了90多人，其中包括过去五周内的50名非法移民。
国土安全部部长马克韦恩·穆林表示，已有10起与选民欺诈相关的定罪案件，全国范围内还有超过1600起针对类似行为的积极调查。
穆林没有回答记者关于该部门计划如何使用被称为SAVE的“外侨资格系统验证数据库”，以便在中期选举前识别不符合资格选民的问题。
2026年9月30日，国土安全部部长马克韦恩·穆林在华盛顿特区罗伯特·F·肯尼迪司法部大楼举行的新闻发布会上发言。
国务院考虑共享护照记录以核查选民公民身份
美国最高法院周五裁定，在诉讼继续进行期间，政府可将该数据库用于选民资格核查。SAVE数据库历来用于帮助政府机构核实申请公共福利的非公民是否符合领取资格。
各州使用SAVE数据库是自愿的，但联邦法律通常禁止各州在联邦选举前90天内系统性地清除选民名册。由于中期选举不到一个月就要举行，最高法院的裁决预计不会立即产生重大影响。
在周三的同一场新闻发布会上，布兰奇还宣布，司法部已向第八巡回上诉法院提交了一份司法行为不当投诉，针对几名接受《纽约时报》采访的明尼苏达州联邦法官，称这些案件仍处于待审状态。
2026年1月28日，移民和海关执法局特工在明尼阿波利斯开展移民执法行动。
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这篇9月17日发布的文章围绕对法官帕特里克·J·席尔茨的采访展开，席尔茨表示，在“地铁突袭行动”期间，移民和海关执法局（ICE）违反了明尼苏达州联邦地区法院的近100项命令，今年1月有数百名联邦特工在明尼阿波利斯街头执行任务。
作为乔治·W·布什任命的法官，席尔茨告诉《泰晤士报》，所谓的违反命令行为可能归结为司法部的无能和人员短缺。
布兰奇表示，席尔茨向《泰晤士报》公开批评特朗普政府的行为违反了司法伦理准则和其道德义务。
“我们已要求第八巡回法院展开调查，同时我们要求这些法官回避所有涉及国土安全部的案件，无论是刑事案件还是民事案件，因为他们在这篇文章中表现出了明显的偏见，”布兰奇说道。
席尔茨向福克斯新闻发表了如下回应：“正如法律伦理专家所证实的那样，我在接受《纽约时报》采访时完全遵守了适用于联邦法官的道德规则。事实上，今年2月，行为准则委员会发布了一项咨询意见，强调联邦法官可以就法治和司法独立等核心司法事务发表讲话和撰写文章。我所做的正是这些。”
詹姆斯·西罗内是福克斯新闻数字频道突发/热点新闻团队的撰稿人。新闻线索可发送至james.cirrone@fox.com。
Blanche announces charges against 10 permanent residents accused of Minnesota voter fraud
September 30, 2026 2:06pm EDT / Fox News
AG Todd Blanche said the DOJ has charged more than 90 people with voter fraud since Trump took office
By James Cirrone
Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Wednesday that a federal grand jury had indicted ten lawful permanent residents accused of voting illegally or attempting to do so in multiple Minnesota elections, including the state’s August 2026 primary.
The ten defendants, originally from Liberia, Canada, South Africa, Brazil, Bosnia, Germany, Ghana and Lithuania, allegedly lied to election officials and told them they were U.S. citizens so they could register to vote.
They were accused of voting in the 2022 and 2024 general elections, according to court records.
“Voter fraud erodes the public’s trust in our electoral system, and it’s vital to our democratic process that we do everything that we can to restore that trust,” Blanche said at a news conference announcing the charges.
FEDERAL INDICTMENT HANDED DOWN IN MINNESOTA RELATED TO ISSUE SOME DEMS CLAIM NEVER HAPPENS: ‘HOTBED FOR FRAUD’
“The most basic way the Department of Justice can accomplish this restoration of trust is by working to make sure the only people voting in an election in the United States are American citizens who are eligible to vote.”
Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks alongside U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin and U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen during a news conference Sept. 30, 2026, in Washington, D.C., announcing the arrest of 10 people for allegedly voting illegally in elections in Minnesota.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The 10 defendants were charged separately. They are Bhator Konah Bryant, 61, of Liberia; Edvile Vaidoto Edmunds, 59, of Lithuania; Joshua Frederick Kofi Edzie, 63, of Ghana; Alan Barbu Kargbo, 48, of Liberia; Paul Kras, 78, of Germany; Fadil Rasim Ozegovic, 58, of Bosnia; Aparecido Donizetti Padovan, 62, of Brazil; Chris Adam Pettiquoi, 43, of Liberia; Christian Liam Schenk, 47, of Canada; and Hester Sophia Weihmann, 69, of South Africa.
Bryant appears to be the only defendant who wasn’t charged with voting illegally, only falsely claiming citizenship in 2024 to register.
Making a false citizenship claim to vote is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, while voting by a noncitizen is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
Blanche also expressed frustration that the media has, in his view, not taken the Justice Department’s work prosecuting election fraud cases seriously to this point.
Officers with Homeland Security Investigations stand on either side of Alan Barbu Kargbo, a 48-year-old Liberian national who allegedly voted illegally in the 2024 election.(Department of Justice)
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION GRANTED WOMAN GREEN CARD MONTHS BEFORE SHE ILLEGALLY VOTED IN 2024 ELECTION: DHS
“I don’t know what the number is that will work for you guys. Whether it’s 106, maybe it’s 120,” he said, referring to a hypothetical number of investigations. “At some point, it has to become meaningful to to the media.”
Blanche said since President Donald Trump has returned to office, the Justice Department has charged more than 90 people with voter fraud offenses, including 50 illegal immigrants in the past five weeks.
Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin said there have been 10 voter fraud-related convictions and that there are more than 1,600 active investigations into similar conduct across the country.
Mullin did not answer a reporter’s question about how the department plans to use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database, known as SAVE, to identify voters who may be ineligible ahead of the midterms.
Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin speaks during a news conference at the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice building on Sept. 30, 2026, in Washington, D.C.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
STATE DEPARTMENT CONSIDERS SHARING PASSPORT RECORDS FOR VOTER CITIZENSHIP CHECKS
The Supreme Court ruled Friday that the administration may use the database for voter-eligibility checks while litigation continues. SAVE has historically been used to help government agencies verify whether noncitizens applying for public benefits are eligible to receive them.
States’ use of the SAVE database is voluntary, but federal law generally bars states from conducting systematic voter-roll purges within 90 days of a federal election. With the midterms less than a month away, the Supreme Court’s ruling is expected to have limited immediate impact.
During the same news conference Wednesday, Blanche also announced that the Justice Department had filed a judicial misconduct complaint with the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals against several Minnesota federal judges who spoke with The New York Times about cases the department said were still pending.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents conduct immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis Jan. 28, 2026.(Madison Thorn/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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The article, published Sept. 17, centered on an interview with Judge Patrick J. Schiltz, who said Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) violated nearly 100 orders from the federal district court in Minnesota during the height of Operation Metro Surge, which saw hundreds of federal agents in the streets of Minneapolis throughout January of this year.
Schiltz, a George W. Bush appointee, told the Times that the alleged violation of these orders likely came down to incompetence and staffing shortages at the Justice Department.
Blanche said Schiltz airing various complaints about the Trump administration to the Times was a violation of judicial canons and his ethical duties.
“We have asked the 8th Circuit to conduct an investigation, and in the meantime, we ask that these judges recuse themselves from every case involving DHS, either criminal or civil in nature, because of the obvious bias they have shown in this article,” Blanche said.
Shiltz issued this response to Fox News, “As legal ethics experts have confirmed, I was acting well within the ethical rules that apply to federal judges in speaking to The New York Times. Indeed, in February of this year, the Committee on Codes of Conduct issued an advisory opinion to emphasize that federal judges may speak and write on core judiciary matters such as advocacy for the rule of law and judicial independence. That is exactly what I did.”
James Cirrone is a writer on the Breaking/Trending News team at Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to james.cirrone@fox.com.
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