Clinton J. Johnson U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma
A Mexican national with a history of repeated removals from the United States was sentenced in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for unlawful reentry. U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson announced that Oscar Palacios Castorena, 34, received a 37-month prison sentence and three years of supervised release from U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby.
According to court records, Palacios Castorena has multiple convictions in the United States. In 2010, he was convicted of drug conspiracy in the Northern District of Oklahoma and sentenced to 30 months in prison. He faced another conviction for drug conspiracy and unlawful reentry in the Western District of Texas in 2012, resulting in a 45-month sentence.
In July 2025, state court documents show that Palacios Castorena pleaded guilty to domestic abuse committed in the presence of a minor and received a one-year suspended sentence. The sentence was later revoked after his arrest on charges related to vehicle theft. During booking for this offense, authorities discovered his undocumented status.
Records indicate that Palacios Castorena had previously been removed from the United States three times: in 2011, 2012, and 2015.
Palacios Castorena will remain detained until transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons and is expected to undergo removal proceedings after completing his sentence.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michele Hulgaard.
