A Mexican national has been sentenced to 30 months in prison for unlawfully reentering the United States after previously being removed. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Fernando Gonzalez-Esparza, also known by several aliases including Fernando Esparza-Gonzalez and Angel Gomez, was found in Muskogee County without legal authorization.
The case began when investigators from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement Division and the Haskell Police Department discovered Gonzalez-Esparza in Oklahoma on July 12, 2025. Authorities determined he had not received permission from the Secretary of Homeland Security to return after his removal from the country on October 1, 2021.
Gonzalez-Esparza pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful reentry of a removed alien on September 10, 2025. The sentencing is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide effort led by the Department of Justice aimed at combating illegal immigration and targeting criminal organizations.
“The Honorable Ronald A. White, Senior District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the hearing,” according to officials. Gonzalez-Esparza will remain in custody with the U.S. Marshals Service until he is transferred to a Bureau of Prisons facility where he will serve his sentence without parole.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Cornell represented the government during sentencing.
