U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrested Marian Charitun, a Slovakian citizen and green card holder, in New Jersey on July 1 for allegedly illegally registering to vote and casting a ballot in the 2022 federal election. Charitun also faces charges for making false statements on his U.S. citizenship application.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, Charitun falsely declared U.S. citizenship when registering to vote and participated in the 2022 general election, which included a U.S. House of Representatives race. He later applied for citizenship, claiming he had never registered or voted in any federal, state, or local elections.
Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said, "This alien from Slovakia illegally voted in American elections, and then lied about it when he tried to apply for citizenship. He now faces federal charges of illegally voting in a federal election and making false statements." Bis added that the message to non-citizens who vote is clear: they will be found, arrested, and face consequences including criminal charges and deportation.
This HSI-led case falls under the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Election Integrity Task Force, a collaborative effort by federal law enforcement to protect election integrity in New Jersey.