Gulfport, Miss. - Jose Garcia Faustino, 21, of Mexico, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola to “time served" or 95 days in prison, followed by one year of supervised release, for unlawful reentry by an alien after deportation or removal, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, Jere T. Miles, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in New Orleans, and Gregory K. Bovino, Chief Patrol Agent of the U.S. Border Patrol’s New Orleans Sector.
As a result of this felony conviction, if Garcia Faustino were to unlawfully return again to the United States, he could face up to ten years in federal prison. Garcia Faustino pled guilty on March 18, 2019, before Judge Guirola.
On or about Jan. 28, 2019, an interdiction agent of the South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team conducted a traffic stop on a GMC Yukon XL with South Carolina license plates at or about the 62-mile marker on interstate I-10 eastbound in Jackson County. The agent observed eight occupants of the vehicle, including Jose Garcia Faustino. Border Patrol Agents arrived on the scene shortly thereafter, and interviewed the occupants of the vehicle as to their citizenships, determining none had proper documents and all were illegally present in the United States.
Of the eight total vehicle occupants (two drivers and six passengers) all were illegal aliens from the Mexican State of Guerrero. All occupants were arrested and transported to the Border Patrol Station in Gulfport. HSI and Border Patrol agents determined that the six passengers were being smuggled within the United States. Further investigation revealed that Garcia Faustino is a citizen of Mexico, and previously had been ordered removed from the United States.
U.S. Attorney Hurst praised the cooperation exhibited by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Border Patrol, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department and the City of Gautier Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Stan Harris was the prosecutor for the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
