Long road to U.S. citizenship finally ends

From the Daily News:

A Queens Man who longed to become a U.S. citizen had his American dream deferred for 17 years because he shared a name with a wanted man.

But Miguel Mejia never stopped trying to convince the feds he's a hardworking, law-abiding man - and not the fugitive who was born on the same day in the same country.

And his persistence has finally paid off.

"Now I feel like part of the country," he said, proudly displaying his brand new American passport.

The 55-year-old Dominican-born man's long, frustrating road toward citizenship began in 1993 when his application was suddenly stalled by immigration officials.

When he asked why, Mejia said he was told that his file had been forwarded to the FBI because he had the same name, country of origin and date of birth as a crook named Miguel Mejia.

This Mejia had a rap sheet and was "not a very good guy," Mejia said.

Then, two years ago, a reporter for the Spanish-language newspaper El Diario/La Prensa got wind of Mejia's story. That report found its way to Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who promised to help.

Another year passed before Mejia got the letter he'd been waiting for telling him that he was now officially a U.S. citizen.

"I was so surprised to finally get that letter," he said. "We all feel so happy. My whole family is overjoyed. It is a great feeling to see my sacrifices and hard work finally pay off."

Asked about his plans, Mejia said, "I'm going to keep working, God willing."