RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Richmond man has been sentenced to seven years in federal prison for participating in a Mexican-based fake-identification ring that protected its turf with violence.

Thirty-five-year-old Armando Gonzalez-Medina was sentenced Friday in federal court in Richmond for racketeering and conspiracy to produce false identification documents. He also was ordered to be deported following the completion of his sentence.

Gonzalez-Medina admitted to working as a runner on behalf of the enterprise’s Richmond cell.

Prosecutors say the enterprise sold fake IDs to illegal immigrants and operated in Virginia and 10 other states.

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