A Honduran citizen has been sentenced to 39 months in federal prison for illegal reentry into the United States, social security fraud, and aggravated identity theft. The sentence was announced by First Assistant United States Attorney Troy Rivetti.
United States District Judge Stephanie L. Haines handed down the sentence to 67-year-old Jose Mejia-Sarmiento. Following his imprisonment, Mejia-Sarmiento will be deported to Honduras.
Court records show that Mejia-Sarmiento was discovered in the Western District of Pennsylvania after previously being deported from the United States three times between 1996 and 2016. His most recent removal followed a felony conviction. The court also heard that between May 2024 and February 2025, Mejia-Sarmiento used another person’s identification to make false statements to the Social Security Administration on four separate occasions.
Assistant United States Attorney Maureen Sheehan-Balchon prosecuted the case for the government.
First Assistant United States Attorney Rivetti acknowledged several agencies for their roles in the investigation: "First Assistant United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General for the investigation that led to the successful prosecution of Mejia-Sarmiento."
The prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at eliminating cartels and transnational criminal organizations, addressing illegal immigration issues, and protecting communities from violent crime.
