A 29-year-old Texas woman is now in custody and facing federal fraud charges after being exposed for impersonating an immigration officer in a multi-year visa fraud scheme.

Mayra Collins, a resident of Brownsville, a city on the far southern tip of Texas, is facing five counts of fraudulently posing as a federal agent with various agencies in 2022 and 2025, Acting U.S. Attorney John Marck announced.

The charges against Collins are for two counts of wire fraud and three counts of impersonating a federal agent, according to local affiliate Fox 26.

The DOJ said Collins first allegedly posed as a federal immigration officer. She allegedly falsely represented that she could expedite the process for obtaining U.S. visas and took money from four victims. In 2025, Collins also allegedly impersonated a Border Patrol agent with influence over the hiring of federal employees. She allegedly told one victim there were job positions available, but that they needed to send her money for uniforms and ballistic vests before beginning employment with Border Patrol.

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According to the DOJ, Collins «never worked for the United States» and «had no power to provide victims of her schemes with Visas or employment» with Border Patrol.

The woman is now facing up to 20 years in federal prison for the two counts of wire fraud and another three years for the impersonation charges. She is also facing a maximum fine of $250,000.

She is expected to make her initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Julie Hampton this Thursday.

Lora Ries, an immigration policy expert with the Heritage Foundation, explained that «the needless complexity of immigration law and the fragmented immigration bureaucracy spread across five federal departments are fertile ground for fraudsters.»

Ries, who is director of the Heritage Foundation’s Border Security and Immigration Center, told Fox News Digital that Democrats «helped create these systemic conditions because they facilitate illegal immigration.»

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People return to the Mexican side of the Rio Grande river in Brownsville, Texas, on May 11, 2023, after dropping off migrants on the U.S. side. The U.S. ended its 40-month Covid-19 emergency and discarded the Title 42 law on the same day. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP)

«This perpetrator exploiting that confusing and scattered system is a consequence of their own making,» Ries said.

She noted that «Congress should greatly simplify immigration law and consolidate many of the immigration agencies for a better immigration system and to prevent such fraud.»

This comes as the DOJ and Department of Homeland Security ramp up the federal government’s investigation into a massive fraud scheme largely involving the Somali immigrant community in Minnesota. Federal officials raided 22 alleged fraud sites Tuesday morning.

The raids center on federal fraud investigations into largely Somali-owned businesses, including childcare facilities that registered their daycare with the state but were allegedly billing for care that was not provided.

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Law enforcement officers seen getting into a vehicle outside of Quality learning center in Minneapolis on April 28, 2026. (Fox News)

Following news of the raids breaking, Vice President JD Vance, head of the administration’s fraud task force, remarked that the «task force and the DOJ will be relentless in exposing these fraudsters wherever they may be hiding.»

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Commenting on the Minnesota crackdown, Ries told Fox News Digital that «Americans, particularly Minnesotans, are pleased to see the ongoing pursuit of justice against fraud in that state.»

«We’ve only seen a glimpse of both the immigration fraud and welfare fraud that have occurred in Minnesota,» she said, adding, «Significant criminal and immigration consequences are needed for all the perpetrators to achieve justice and to send a message to others throughout the country not to engage in fraud.»

Two people were stabbed in north London on Wednesday in an attack that police have now formally declared a terrorist incident, prompting a major emergency response and an ongoing counterterrorism investigation.

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, the Metropolitan Police’s counterterrorism chief, said the attack has been officially classified as terrorism as investigators work to determine the motive and whether the Jewish community was deliberately targeted.

Officers were called to Highfield Avenue in the Barnet borough at about 11:16 a.m. following reports of multiple stabbings, according to the Metropolitan Police. Local and armed officers responded alongside the London Ambulance Service.

A 45-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and remains in custody, police said. Authorities are working to determine his nationality and background.

Two men, ages 76 and 34, were treated at the scene for stab wounds before being taken to a hospital, where they remain and are «being looked after,» Taylor said.

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Police said the suspect also attacked responding officers before he was subdued with a Taser. No officers were injured.

Counterterrorism officers are leading the investigation, working with security services to establish the full circumstances and develop a complete intelligence picture, Taylor said.

«Whilst I must stress this investigation is at an early stage, we are working quickly to understand exactly what happened,» Counter Terrorism Policing head Laurence Taylor said.

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The stabbing unfolded in the Barnet area, near Golders Green, which is known for its large Jewish community. Authorities have indicated the case is being treated as a potentially antisemitic incident, though motive has not been confirmed.

The stabbing unfolded in the Barnet area, near Golders Green, which is known for its large Jewish community, and police said one line of inquiry is whether the attack deliberately targeted London’s Jewish community, though a motive has not been confirmed.

A statement posted on X by Shomrim, a volunteer neighborhood watch group in Orthodox Jewish communities, said a man was seen «armed with a knife» on Golders Green Road and was detained by members before police arrived. The group claimed the suspect attempted to target Jewish members of the public — a detail police have not independently confirmed.

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Shomrim said two victims were treated by Hatzola, a volunteer emergency medical service.

Police at the scene where two people were stabbed on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in a London neighborhood with a large Jewish community. A 45-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder over what authorities called an antisemitic attack. (Lucy North/PA via AP)

Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams said officers «swiftly Tasered and arrested the suspect before he could cause further harm,» adding that investigators are «considering all possible motives» and will maintain a visible police presence in the area.

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Williams said police are «aware of the significant distress and concern this incident is likely to cause,» and will remain in the area to carry out inquiries and reassure residents.

The attack comes amid heightened concern over antisemitic incidents across the United Kingdom. Authorities are examining recent incidents in London but have not established any direct connection.

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British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the violence, calling attacks on Jewish residents «an attack on Britain,» while London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there is «no place for antisemitism» in the city.

Conservative MP Kemi Badenoch said, «Jewish people in our country are under constant attack. This is no longer a growing pattern. There is an epidemic of violence against Jewish people. It is now a national emergency and needs to be treated as such by the Government and public authorities.»

Dov Forman, a Golders Green resident and Holocaust educator, described the attack as part of what he sees as a broader and deeply concerning trend.

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Police officers work by cordon at the junction of Golders Green Road and the North Circular Road, in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London, on April 29, 2026. (JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP via Getty Images)

«Yet again, terror has been brought to our doorstep here in Golders Green, in the heart of London’s Jewish community,» Forman said. «Earlier today, two visibly Jewish men were stabbed in what is being described as an antisemitic attack. For many, this is not being seen as an isolated act of violence, but as part of a broader and deeply troubling pattern. There is growing concern that extemist rhetoric and Islamist extremism, including calls to ‘globalize the intifada,’ has helped fuel an environment in which hatred against Jews is increasingly normalized, unchecked, and dangerously emboldened.»

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he was «horrified by yet another violent attack on Jews in broad daylight on the streets of London» and called for urgent action.

«No Jew anywhere in the world should be a target because of their faith,» Herzog said, adding that authorities must act «before the next antisemitic attack occurs.»

Authorities urged anyone with information to contact police as the investigation continues.

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The number of antisemitic incidents reported across the U.K. has soared since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel and the subsequent Gaza war, according to the Community Security Trust. The group recorded 3,700 incidents in 2025, up from 1,662 in 2022.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Tras siete años sin vuelos directos entre Estados Unidos y Venezuela, American Airlines retoma este jueves la ruta Caracas-Miami, un hito que no solo acorta las distancias al eliminar escalas para los viajeros, sino que consolida el restablecimiento de las relaciones diplomáticas entre ambos países.

American, una de las aerolíneas internacionales con mayor presencia en el mercado venezolano durante décadas, formalizará el reinicio de sus operaciones con un vuelo que partirá la tarde del jueves desde el Aeropuerto Internacional de Maiquetía Simón Bolívar, de Caracas, para retornar el viernes desde Miami.

La compañía tendrá a partir de mayo una frecuencia de dos vuelos diarios que serán operados por Envoy, una de sus subsidiarias, en un avión Embraer 175 que tiene capacidad para menos de 100 personas.

Este retorno se produce casi exactamente siete años después de que cesara sus funciones en el país, coincidiendo de forma simétrica con la ruptura de relaciones diplomáticas entre Venezuela y Estados Unidos que hoy, bajo un nuevo escenario político, se consideran formalmente reanudadas tras las captura de Nicolás Maduro en enero pasado por militares estadounidenses y el ascenso como presidenta encargada de Delcy Rodríguez.

Esta conexión directa facilitará, por ejemplo, el traslado de funcionarios y delegaciones tras la reapertura de embajadas y dará más confianza especialmente a los estadounidenses, coincidiendo también con la reciente aprobación de leyes en Venezuela que incentivan la inversión extranjera en sectores estratégicos como hidrocarburos y minería, ambos de interés para el gobierno de Donald Trump.

«Es una oportunidad importantísima de apertura del mercado y de la conectividad, porque es una apuesta de confianza hacia el destino«, indicó a la agencia EFE la presidenta de la Asociación Venezolana de Viajes y Turismo (Avavit), Vicky Herrera.

Con el régimen chavista en el poder Venezuela enfrentó dificultades en el sector aéreo desde hace más de una década, debido a las deudas del Estado con aerolíneas internacionales a raíz del control de cambio que se flexibilizó en los últimos años.

Herrera también destacó que esto afectará la «competitividad» de otras rutas, como por ejemplo las que hacían escala en Colombia, Panamá y República Dominicana.

«Ya lo estamos viendo en temas de precios», añadió en referencia a que empresas como la panameña Copa, una de las pocas que se quedó en Venezuela en medio de la crisis, está ofreciendo vuelos por unos 700 a 800 dólares, mientras que American para estos primeros vuelos ofrecía boletos por encima de los 1.000 dólares.

Para los venezolanos en Miami, la mayor comunidad de estos inmigrantes en Estados Unidos, la reanudación de los vuelos directos supone para muchos el fin de años de separación familiar, marcada por el dolor y los elevados costos de viaje por terceros países.

Miguel Ángel Ruiz, quien vive en Doral, una ciudad del condado Miami-Dade de gran población venezolana, aseguró que está feliz de poder llevar a sus hijos a las playas de su infancia.

«Esa noticia me emocionó tanto como cuando se llevaron a (Nicolás) Maduro«, expresó en referencia a la operación de enero en la que militares estadounidenses trasladaron al dictador chavista desde Caracas a una cárcel en Nueva York, donde es juzgado por narcotráfico.

La reanudación de los vuelos, sin embargo, enfrenta retos como los trámites consulares para obtener un pasaporte vigente o un salvoconducto que reemplace ese documento en caso de que esté vencido, mientras se dan los primeros pasos para que Venezuela recupere presencia diplomática y consular en Estados Unidos.

American Airlines, que comenzó a operar en Venezuela en 1987, había suspendido sus vuelos a Caracas en marzo de 2019, en medio de la prohibición impuesta entonces por la primera administración de Donald Trump (2017-2021) a las empresas aéreas estadounidenses de operar hacia ese país, como parte de un paquete de sanciones.

Fue la última de las aerolíneas estadounidenses en suspender sus operaciones, después de que United y Delta lo hicieran en 2017.