During a week-long enforcement operation from January 17 to January 23, 2026, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona charged 150 individuals with immigration-related crimes. The office filed 87 cases involving illegal re-entry into the United States and charged another 45 individuals with illegal entry. Additionally, prosecutors brought 15 cases against 17 people accused of smuggling undocumented immigrants within or into Arizona. One person was also charged with assaulting a Border Patrol agent.
The cases were referred or supported by several federal law enforcement agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Among the recent cases:
United States v. Pablo Gomez-Luvanos: Gomez-Luvanos was charged on January 19, 2026, with re-entry after removal from the United States. He had previously been deported on June 11, 2019, following a felony conviction for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in Maricopa County Superior Court. He served three-and-a-half years in prison.
United States v. Efrain Gutierrez-Perez: Gutierrez-Perez was also charged on January 19, 2026, with re-entry after removal from the country. He had been deported on December 11, 2019, after being convicted of aggravated driving under the influence in Maricopa County Superior Court. His sentence included four months in jail and two years’ probation.
“A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.
More information about these actions can be found at http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/.
