Rebecca C. Lutzko United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio
Five individuals have been sentenced for illegally re-entering the United States after previous deportations, according to an April 14 announcement from authorities in Toledo, Ohio. The cases are separate and unrelated. After serving their sentences, each individual will be subject to a detainer from United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement and will be taken into administrative immigration custody for removal from the country.
The matter is significant as it highlights ongoing efforts by law enforcement to address repeated unauthorized entries into the U.S., as well as related offenses such as assault on federal officers and misuse of identification documents.
The defendants include Francisco Constancio-Mariscal, a 38-year-old citizen of Mexico; Oscar Mendoza, a 52-year-old citizen of Honduras; Guillermo Gutierrez-Rivas, a 36-year-old citizen of Mexico; Alvaro Veliz Gonzalez, a 35-year-old citizen of Guatemala; and Marcos Alberto Bardales-Lopez, a 27-year-old citizen of Honduras. Each was sentenced after pleading guilty to Illegal Entry of a Removed Alien under Title 8 U.S. Code 1326. Sentences ranged from time served to ten months in prison. Additionally, Jhofran Andres Laya-Gutierrez, a 29-year-old Venezuelan national, received a sentence of thirty-six months in prison after pleading guilty to charges including Assaulting or Impeding a Federal Officer and Misuse of a Social Security Number.
Investigations were conducted by the U.S. Border Patrol-Sandusky Bay Station. Prosecutions were handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Ava Rotell Dustin, Robert Melching, Sara Al-Sorghali, Alissa Sterling, and Matthew Simko for the Northern District of Ohio.
Authorities said these cases are part of Operation Take Back America—a nationwide initiative that aims "to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and to protect communities from the perpetrators of violent crime."
