Alexander Villanueva, a 37-year-old resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, has pled guilty to several charges including reckless driving and possessing an open container of alcohol in a vehicle. The incident occurred in Yellowstone National Park on January 14, 2025. Court documents reveal that Villanueva was reported by a park visitor for erratic driving behavior. Following his arrest, he refused to submit to an official breath test. As a result, he received a seven-day incarceration sentence with credit for two days served and was fined $1,020. Additionally, he is prohibited from entering Yellowstone National Park for two years during his unsupervised probation and is barred from operating a motor vehicle on federal lands for one year under 18 U.S.C. 3118.
In another case, Phillip Brent Chiles, aged 61 from Riverton, Wyoming, has been sentenced to three years’ probation with two months of home confinement for possession of a firearm as a felon and unlawful user of controlled substances. On May 3, 2024, the Riverton Police Department contacted Chiles following comments made by his child at school about access to a gun. Chiles cooperated with authorities and admitted to using methamphetamine weekly while also possessing the firearm for hunting purposes with his son. His felony conviction dates back to a burglary offense in 1983. Chief U.S. District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl imposed the sentence on January 16 in Casper after Chiles pleaded guilty on October 9, 2024.
Joel David Vazquez-Sanchez from Curaren, Francisco Morazan in Honduras was sentenced to time served and will be deported following illegal reentry into the United States. Arrested on July 3, 2024, by the Albany County Sheriff’s Office for driving under the influence, it was discovered that Vazquez-Sanchez had previously been deported and did not have permission to reenter the country after his formal removal in September 2016. The investigation was conducted by ICE agents and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron J. Cook with Chief U.S. District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl delivering the sentence on January 16 in Casper.
