Gulfport, Miss. - Luis Fernando Carrera-Tolentino, age 21, an illegal alien from Mexico, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola, Jr., for the crime of unlawful reentry by a removed alien previously convicted of a felony, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Gregory A. Bovino, Chief Patrol Agent of the U.S. Border Patrol’s New Orleans Sector.
Carrera-Tolentino was sentenced to serve 11 months in federal prison, which will be followed by Department of Homeland Security removal proceedings. Additionally, Carrera-Tolentino was sentenced to three years of supervised release during which time he could face additional penalties if he were to unlawfully return to the United States.
As a result of his felony conviction, if he were to unlawfully return again to the United States, he could face up to ten years in federal prison. Carrera-Tolentino was convicted after pleading guilty on Oct. 16, 2018, in Gulfport.
On July 12, 2018, a U.S. Border Patrol agent was observing Interstate 10 as part of the South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team, an interagency task force in Jackson County. The agent executed a vehicle stop on a Toyota Corolla that had been identified through Border Patrol intelligence. The driver was arrested for transporting illegal aliens, and both passengers, including Carrera-Tolentino, were arrested for being in the United States illegally. At the Border Patrol Station, Carrera-Tolentino was positively identified through his own statement and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) computerized record checks.
Using Homeland Security electronic database queries, agents determined that Carrera-Tolentino was born in Mexico, and is a citizen of Mexico. He had been lawfully ordered removed and was physically removed from the United States in December 2017. It also was documented that Carrera-Tolentino has a felony criminal history including conviction in 2016, for two felony counts of Burglary-First Degree in the State of Georgia.
U.S. Attorney Hurst commended the work of the United States Border Patrol and the South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team Interagency Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Stan Harris was the prosecutor for the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
