Timothy T. Duax U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa
A Honduran national, Oscar Lopez-Martinez, has been sentenced to 12 months and one day in federal prison for illegally reentering the United States after previously being deported multiple times. The sentencing took place in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with Chief Judge C.J. Williams presiding.
Lopez-Martinez, age 46, pleaded guilty on November 5, 2025, to one count of illegal reentry. According to court information presented at sentencing, he was initially arrested in December 2022 for operating while intoxicated (OWI) in Cedar Rapids. Following his arrest and detention in Linn County jail, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers identified him as having unlawfully reentered the country. Authorities stated that Lopez-Martinez had been removed from the United States six times prior and had a previous conviction for illegal entry in Arizona in 2016.
Pending trial for his latest offense, Lopez-Martinez was released under supervision with an ankle monitor attached by probation authorities. However, days after his release, he removed the device and absconded. His location remained unknown until September 2025 when he was apprehended by the United States Marshals Service.
Following his prison term, Lopez-Martinez will serve a one-year term of supervised release. There is no parole available in the federal system.
The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Morfitt. The investigation involved the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Enforcement and Removal Operations as well as the United States Marshals Service.
“This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime,” according to officials.
Lopez-Martinez remains in U.S. Marshal’s custody pending transfer to a federal facility.
