Defendant fled after being released from state custody despite immigration detainer
BOSTON - A Colombian national, previously deported following a conviction for cocaine trafficking, pleaded guilty and was sentenced today in federal court in Boston.
Fabian Herrera Vasquez, 36, who previously resided in East Boston, pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful reentry of a deported alien and was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock to two years in prison and three years of supervised release. Herrera Vasquez was arrested and charged by criminal complaint in October 2019 and has been held in federal custody since that time.
Herrera Vasquez was deported to Colombia on June 19, 2009, after a 2007 conviction for six counts of cocaine trafficking in Middlesex County. At the time of his deportation, Herrera Vasquez’s fingerprints and photograph were affixed to his warrant of removal.
In 2014, Herrera Vasquez was arrested by police for cocaine trafficking, at which time immigration authorities lodged a detainer. For reasons unknown, Herrera Vasquez was released from state custody, defaulted at his next court date and a warrant was issued for his arrest. On Sept. 19, 2019, Herrera Vasquez was arrested in Revere for various motor vehicle violations. At that time he presented a Pennsylvania driver’s license with his photograph, but in the identity of a Puerto Rican born United States citizen.
Herrera Vasquez’s fingerprints were difficult to obtain because of noticeable alterations. Ultimately, Herrera Vasquez was identified by, among other things, a fingerprint match of the print on his warrant of removal and the prints taken from his September 2019 arrest.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Todd Lyons, Field Office Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Boston made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey E. Weinstein of Lelling’s Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
