Criminal Illegal Alien from Mexico Sentenced to Federal Prison

Tallahassee, Florida - Mario Lopez-Martinez, 33, of Mexico, was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to illegal reentry into the United States. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: "Our nation's immigration laws are not mere suggestions that can be brazenly disregarded by illegal aliens cutting in line in front of the thousands of other immigrants trying the right way to enter and remain in our country. Criminal aliens, like this defendant who continued breaking our nation's laws after his illegal reentry, pose a very real threat to our public safety, and my office will aggressively prosecute such offenders to the fullest extent of the law."

Court documents reflect that the defendant, a citizen of Mexico, departed the United States in 2017 after an Immigration Judge entered an Order of Removal. He illegally returned to the United States two additional times in 2019 and 2020. The defendant was convicted of Driving Under the Influence in 2022 in Gadsden County and Fleeing from a Law Enforcement Officer and Resisting without Violence in 2026.

"Repeated illegal reentry into the United States is a serious offense, and those who disregard court orders and federal statutes will be held accountable," said Homeland Security Investigations Tallahassee Assistant Special Agent in Charge Nicholas Ingegno. "Protecting the integrity of our immigration system is essential to public safety and the rule of law."

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Enforcement and Removal Operations and the Madison County Sheriff's Office. Assistant United States Attorney Eric W. Welch prosecuted the case.

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.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation's principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of FloridaLinks 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. website. For more information about the United States Attorney's Office, Northern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.