(The Center Square) – Six of the nearly 140 people referred by Secretary of State Frank LaRose to Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost for illegal voting have been charged.

Yost announced Tuesday that seven cases were presented to grand juries last week, resulting in six counts of illegal voting. A grand jury declined to indict the seventh.

Five of the charges involved legal permanent U.S. residents without citizenship. The sixth involved a non-citizen accused of voting in 2014, 2016 and 2018. Only two of the charges related to the 2020 election.

“The right to vote is sacred,” Yost said. “If you are not a U.S. citizen, it is illegal to vote – whether you thought you were allowed to or not – you will be held accountable.”

The charges include:

• Ramesh Patel, 68, of North Royalton, was charged in Cuyahoga County with illegal voting. Patel was a U.S. citizen when he was accused of voting in 2014, 2016 and 2018.

• Lorinda Miller, 78, of Hudson, was charged in Summit County with two counts of illegal voting. Miller is a legal permanent resident but was not a U.S. citizen when he was charged with voting in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
• Nicholas Fontaine, 32, of Kent, was charged in Portage County with illegal voting. Fontaine is a legal permanent resident but was not a U.S. citizen when he was accused of voting in 2016 and 2018.
• Ahmed Aden, 35, of Columbus, was charged in Franklin County with illegal voting. Aden is a legal permanent resident but was not a U.S. citizen when he was charged with voting in 2008 and 2020.
• Van Thuy Cooper, 53, of Hilliard, was charged in Franklin County with illegal voting. Cooper is a legal permanent resident but was not a U.S. citizen when he was charged with voting in 2016 and 2020.

• Mario Dearaujo, 62, of Columbus, was charged in Franklin County with illegal voting. Dearaujo is a legal resident but not a U.S. citizen when he was charged with voting in 2016 and 2018.

Illegal voting is a fourth-degree felony. The penalty is a maximum of 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Each case had previously been referred to county prosecutors.

The unindicted case involved an Oberlin College student who reportedly voted in Ohio and Washington in 2018.

“Irregularities like this are rare, and this is a small number of cases,” Yost said. “We should all have confidence in the upcoming elections, knowing that the laws are being enforced and will continue to be enforced.”

Yost said his officer is continuing the voter fraud investigation and has made other referrals to county prosecutors.