Three foreign nationals have been charged in Connecticut with illegally reentering the United States after having previously been deported, according to an announcement from David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Freddy Alexander Morales Tejada, a 24-year-old citizen of El Salvador residing in Vernon, pleaded guilty on November 10, 2025, in New Haven federal court to illegal reentry. Court records indicate that Morales Tejada was convicted in October 2023 in Connecticut Superior Court for carrying a pistol without a permit and failure to appear. He was deported to El Salvador in February 2024 but returned unlawfully and was found in South Windsor on May 19, 2025. At that time, he was arrested for engaging police in a pursuit and several motor vehicle offenses. He has been detained since his federal arrest on October 23, 2025. Sentencing is scheduled for February 25, 2026 before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden; he faces up to ten years imprisonment.
Ioan Alin Zele, also known as Ioan Kanalos and Filippo Gaudenzi, a Romanian national aged 24, pleaded guilty on November 3, 2025 to illegal reentry after deportation. In September 2023 he had been convicted in California federal court of bank fraud and unlawful use of unauthorized access devices related to skimming food stamp cards and withdrawing benefits using cloned cards. After serving a sentence of sixteen months’ imprisonment and being removed to Romania in June 2024, Zele returned unlawfully and was arrested by Connecticut State Police under an alias for computer crime and related charges. Following completion of his state sentence he was federally charged on October 2, 2025; sentencing is set for February 24, 2026 before Judge Bolden with a maximum penalty of twenty years.
Carlos Cabrera-Zaruma, age forty-five and originally from Ecuador but residing in Danbury, was indicted by a New Haven grand jury on October 15, 2025 for illegal reentry after deportation. According to court documents he had previously been convicted in Connecticut Superior Court of sexual assault against a minor under sixteen as well as operating under the influence; he was deported to Ecuador in September 2010 but later returned unlawfully to Connecticut where he has remained detained since his arrest on October 7, 2025.
U.S. Attorney Sullivan emphasized: "An indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."
The investigations are being led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel is prosecuting the cases against Morales Tejada and Cabrera-Zaruma; Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexis L. Beyerlein is handling the case against Zele.
These prosecutions fall under Operation Take Back America—a Department of Justice initiative aimed at combating illegal immigration through coordinated efforts involving Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). The program seeks "to repel the invasion of illegal immigration," eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect communities from violent crime perpetrators.
