Illegal Alien with 12 Prior Removals from the United States Indicted for Illegal Re-Entry by a Convicted Felon

NEWARK, N.J. - An illegal alien who was previously removed from the United States on 12 separate occasions was arraigned earlier today on a charge of illegal re-entry after previously being convicted of a felony, U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer announced.

Aedo Cruz Gonzalez, 40, of New Jersey, was charged in a one-count Indictment with illegal re-entry by a convicted felon, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Sections 1326(a) and (b)(1).

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

Cruz Gonzalez, a citizen of Mexico, was removed from the United States to Mexico 12 separate times for illegally entering the United States between 2011 and September 2024.

On February 6, 2012, Cruz Gonzalez pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona to a felony offense of illegally re-entering the United States, and was sentenced to five months' imprisonment. He was subsequently removed from the United States to Mexico for the third time on or about August 20, 2012.

Following his removal in August 2012, Cruz Gonzalez illegally entered the United States on nine additional occasions and was removed to Mexico each time. After his most recent removal on or about September 24, 2024, Cruz Gonzalez again unlawfully re-entered the United States. He was subsequently arrested by the Hillsborough Police Department on or about December 7, 2024 and charged with numerous crimes, including exhibiting a false motor vehicle insurance card and operating a motor vehicle during license suspension. Cruz Gonzalez was convicted in Somerset County Superior Court on those two charges on May 22, 2025.

The charge of unlawful re-entry by a convicted felon carries a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain to the defendant as a result of the offense, or twice the gross loss to a person other than the defendant as a result of the offense, whichever is greatest.

U.S. Attorney Frazer credited U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Enforcement and Removal Operations - Newark Field Office, under the direction of Acting Field Officer Director Arthur J. Wilson Jr., for their assistance with the investigation.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Miller of the General Crimes Unit in Newark.

The charges and allegations contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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Defense counsel: Adam Axel, Esq. and Meagan McGurl, Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defenders