A Guatemalan national, Roberto Nicolas-Simon, 24, has pleaded guilty to charges of being illegally present in the United States after a prior removal and failing to update his registration as a convicted sex offender. The plea was entered on September 24, 2025, and acceptance is pending before U.S. District Court Judge Colin S. Bruce. Sentencing is scheduled for February 2, 2026, at the U.S. Courthouse in Urbana, Illinois.
In proceedings before U.S. Magistrate Judge Eric I. Long, Nicolas-Simon admitted to reentering the country without authorization and not updating his sex offender registration as required by law. According to statements made during the hearing, Nicolas-Simon had previously been removed from the United States following a conviction for aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a minor in Champaign County, Illinois in 2020. As a result of that conviction, he was obligated to register his residential address under the Sex Offender Notification and Registration Act.
An investigation conducted this year determined that Nicolas-Simon had returned illegally to the United States and was residing in Champaign without complying with sex offender registration requirements.
Nicolas-Simon is currently held by the United States Marshals Service while awaiting sentencing.
He faces statutory penalties of up to ten years imprisonment and fines up to $250,000 for each offense. Additionally, he could receive up to three years of supervised release for illegal presence in the country and between five years and life of supervised release for failing to update his sex offender registration.
The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement in partnership with the United States Marshals Service. Assistant United States Attorney William J. Lynch is prosecuting the case.
