Venezuelan man who pretended to be a teen to attend high school faces additional years in prison

PERRYSBURG, Ohio (WTVG/Gray) - A Venezuelan man who pretended to be a teenager and attended a high school in Ohio was sentenced to four years in prison Thursday for forgery and pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor.

Anthony Labrador-Sierra, 25, was convicted of the new charges on March 26.

He first made national headlines after WTVG reported that he had been arrested on a forgery charge. Investigators said the then-24-year-old used false documents, including to pose as a 16-year-old, in order to attend Perrysburg High School.

The man’s legal guardians, who thought they were helping a homeless teenage immigrant who escaped a trafficking situation, learned about his real identity earlier when the mother of Labrador-Sierra’s child reached out to them, according to police reports.

That was when the guardians checked his room and found a prepaid cell phone, a fraudulent Michigan driver’s license with a 1999 date of birth, money, a gun and three loaded 9mm magazines under his mattress, charging records said earlier.

Investigators said the legal guardians destroyed the Michigan driver’s license because they believed it was fake and did not want Labrador-Sierra to use it. He later confirmed to investigators it was fake and that he ordered it online, according to the federal complaint.

Labrador-Sierra was convicted in September and sentenced to two years in prison and three years of probation earlier this year on federal forgery and perjury charges.

The perjury charge stems from sworn statements he made about his age and legal status.

He had also pleaded guilty to four other charges: possession of a firearm by an alien unlawfully in the United States, false statement during purchase of a firearm and two counts of making or using false writings or documents.

A previous court filing said he is court-ordered to have no contact with any student at Perrysburg High School.

A statement from the Department of Justice said he used a fake date of birth on an application for Temporary Protected Status and Employment Authorization Documents in 2024 and 2025.

An earlier indictment said he used fake information on an ATF form to buy a semiautomatic pistol. Labrador-Sierra provided false information about his citizenship and legal status to deceive the licensed firearms dealer, authorities said.

Another criminal complaint said that the firearm purchase was made at the Bass Pro Shop in Rossford in July 2022. It showed an Ohio driver’s license Labrador-Sierra used to purchase the gun, which prosecutors say he obtained in September 2021.