Report: DHS Official Targeted in Phony Degree Investigation

A high-ranking Department of Homeland Security official has reportedly been suspended as a federal grand jury probes whether he lied about having a college degree.

The Smoking Gun reports that the ongoing criminal targets Jorge Guzman, a 25-year law enforcement veteran who served as the assistant special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Los Angeles branch.

Authorities executed a search warrant at Guzman's office in December, according to the website, as he was simultaneously placed on administrative leave and stripped of his firearm, badge and government vehicle.

Attorneys for Guzman, 51, claim he graduated from a California community college and has provided federal officials with copies of an authentic diploma. In a recent court filing, Guzman’s counsel stated that their client’s "name and reputation are being ruined by a false allegation" and poor investigative work.

According to an anonymous tip that Guzman had "lied throughout his career that he has a college degree," ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility launch an investigation late last year. In employment applications and background check documents, Guzman has reported receiving an Associate of Arts degree from Sacramento City College in January 1986, shortly before his hiring as a Border Patrol agent, the Smoking Gun reports.

Following a review of records and school transcripts, as well as an interview with a college admissions supervisor, agents concluded that there was probable cause to believe that Guzman had lied about earning a degree from the two-year college, which he attended from 1978 to 1986 -- and that he provided superiors with a bogus diploma. 

Click here for more on this report from The Smoking Gun.