The document that landed at Riverside County’s child-welfare office looked like every other federal court order: a case caption, the right formatting, and a federal judge’s signature at the bottom ordering the county to hand four children back to their parents. Two days later the judge whose name was on it said she had never seen it.
Federal agents arrested the parents, Alan David Cadena, 43, and LayCee Shyann Sprouse, 34, of Riverside, this week on federal charges of forging a judge’s signature. The arrests were reported Thursday, September 18, 2026. Prosecutors say the couple filed the fake order on April 21 in the middle of a custody case that had put their children in county care, and that the judge confirmed on April 23 the signature was not hers.
Story Snapshot
- The forged order was aimed at Riverside County authorities and demanded the return of the couple’s four children.
- Forging a federal judge’s signature is a specific federal felony (Title 18, Section 505), separate from ordinary fraud, because it hijacks the court’s own authority.
- The judge’s denial two days after the filing is the core of the case; the county never released the children.
- Some outlets reported the couple are in the country illegally; the federal charges are about the forgery, not immigration status.
Where This Stands Right Now
Cadena and Sprouse face an initial appearance in federal court in the Central District of California. The custody case that started it all continues in state court, where a forged order will now sit in the file next to the real ones. Prosecutors have not said how the couple produced the document or whether anyone helped them.
Why This One Is A Federal Case
A fake court order is not treated like a fake ID. The statute prosecutors are using exists because a judge’s signature is the thing that makes officials act; if it can be counterfeited, every order a county receives becomes a question. Prior convictions under the same law include a Ventura County man who fabricated court papers to take custody of his daughter, and the penalties run to prison time. In this case the plan failed on the simplest check available: someone at the county asked the judge.
What Happens Next
The federal case will turn on who created the document and who filed it, both of which prosecutors say they can show. The children remain in county care. For the caseworkers who handle hundreds of real orders a year, the lesson of the fake one is already in effect: the signature gets a phone call.
Sources:
kesq.com, nbclosangeles.com, keyt.com, pjmedia.com