A Belizean woman has been found guilty of naturalisation fraud in the United States after a federal jury determined that she used a fake divorce document as part of her citizenship application.

Ana Zahia Gonzalez, 46, of Winter Garden, now faces up to 10 years in prison and could also be stripped of her US citizenship. Her sentencing is scheduled for July 13, 2026.

US Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe, who announced the verdict, said the case stemmed from false information submitted during the naturalisation process.

The court heard that Gonzalez entered the United States on a visitor visa in 2006 but remained after it expired.

In 2011, she married a US citizen who was unaware that she was still legally married to a man in Belize.

In 2016, she applied for citizenship and claimed that her previous marriage had been legally dissolved — a claim prosecutors said was supported by a fraudulent divorce decree.
Gonzalez was indicted in November 2025.

Officials said the matter forms part of a broader effort by US authorities to clamp down on immigration fraud and related offences.