Guatemalan Citizen and Convicted Felon Guilty of Illegal Reentry

According to court documents, on May 15, 2024, MENDEZ-FRANCISCO pled guilty to Domestic Abuse-Child under 13 Present, a felony, in the 24^th Judicial District Court Parish of Jefferson. The United States government removed MENDEZ-FRANCISCO from the United States on July 3, 2024. Law enforcement authorities later located MENDEZ-FRANCISCO, an illegal alien, in Jefferson Parish on May 2, 2025. MENDEZ-FRANCISCO had not received permission from the Attorney General of the United States or the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to reenter the United States.

United States District Judge Brandon S. Long set sentencing for April 14, 2026. At sentencing, MENDEZ-FRANCISCO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of ten (10) years, a fine of up to $250,000, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.

U.S. Attorney Courcelle praised the work of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations ("ICE-ERO") in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Duane A. Evans of the General Crimes Unit is prosecuting the matter.

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. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

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