Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office Announces Take Back America Prosecutions Including Sentence for Man Who Resisted Arrest

Baltimore, Maryland - U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes announced the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland's recent prosecutions in connection with the Department of Justice's Operation Take Back America, including sentencing for an illegal alien who resisted arrest.

Hayes announced the prosecutions with Acting Field Office Director Vernon Liggins, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE-ERO) - Baltimore Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Christopher R. Heck, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) - Maryland.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Ajmel A. Quereshi sentenced Cristian Rivas-Bonilla, 27, an El Salvadorian citizen, to time served for an incident stemming from a final order of removal from an immigration judge. Rivas-Bonilla received the sentence after he pled guilty to resisting, opposing, impeding, and interfering with federal law enforcement officers. In November 2025, when law enforcement traveled to Camp Springs, Maryland, to find Rivas-Bonilla, he tried to evade HSI agents, taking them on a high-speed car chase.

An El Salvadorian citizen recently pled guilty to an illegal re-entry charge in federal court. Willians Elenilson Beltran-Quintanilla, 39, is charged with illegally re-entering the United States after removal. According to court documents, in December 2023, law enforcement found Beltran-Quintanilla in Prince George's County, Maryland, after he was previously removed from the U.S.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland also announced an indictment against a 45-year-old El Salvadorian national charged with illegally re-entering the United States after he was convicted of burglary, grand larceny, and abduction charges connected to three home invasions in Fairfax County, Virgina, and was previously removed from the country. According to the indictment, on January 19, 2026, ICE law enforcement officers arrested Kevin Mendez Vasquez, aka "Kevin Estix Lara Henriquez," while conducting a vehicle investigation in Elkridge, Maryland.

Additionally, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland announced it filed a criminal complaint against an El Salvadorian national in connection with illegal re-entry charges. In December 2025, law enforcement received a tip that Juan Carlos Rivas-Montano, 45, was working in Hyattsville, Maryland. After a positive confirmation, law enforcement took Rivas-Montano into custody. Authorities deported Rivas-Montano on two previous occasions.

In addition, a federal grand jury indicted Samuel Rios-Rodriguez, 33, a citizen and national of Honduras, who is charged with illegal re-entry into the U.S. According to the indictment, Rios-Rodriguez was previously removed from the U.S. in November 2017. Law enforcement found Rios-Rodrigeuz in the District of Maryland again after he was arrested in December 2022.

A federal grand jury also indicted a citizen and national of Honduras on an illegal re-entry after aggravated felony conviction and removal charge. Carlos Amador Lopez, 29, is charged with illegally re-entering the U.S. after he was convicted for committing an aggravated felony and being removed. According to the indictment, law enforcement encountered Lopez in the District of Maryland again in December 2025.

These cases are 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.

U.S. Attorney Hayes commended ICE-ERO and HSI for its work in these investigations. Ms. Hayes also thanked the Assistant U.S. Attorneys who prosecuted these federal cases.

For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, visit justice.gov/usao-mdLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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