Border enforcement efforts result in nearly 200 more cases filed in the Southern District of Texas

HOUSTON - Another 199 people have been charged, including 175 illegal aliens, in 194 cases involving immigration and border security-related crimes from July 10-16.

A total of 146 criminal complaints were filed for felony reentry after prior removal, while another 17 people face charges of illegal entry. Most of those illegal aliens have prior felonies such as narcotics, violent crime, immigration crimes, and more. In addition, 28 people have been charged with human smuggling which includes 12 illegal aliens themselves. The remaining cases charged this week relate to other immigration crimes and firearms charges.

One of the cases includes Pablo Ramirez-Mata, a Mexican illegal alien that law enforcement allegedly discovered unlawfully in the country near Roma. The criminal complaint against him alleges he has a prior conviction for online solicitation of a minor, and authorities had just removed him April 26. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

In addition to the new cases, Saifullah Al-Mamun made his initial appearance in Laredo federal court following his extradition from Brazil. The Bangladeshi national allegedly participated in an international human smuggling conspiracy that facilitated the movement of illegal aliens through South and Central America and Mexico into the United States for financial gain.

Also announced was the conviction of Jose Luis Reyes-Martinez, a previously removed illegal alien from Mexico who pleaded guilty to robbery, carjacking, brandishing a firearm, and illegal reentry. He robbed a Houston supermarket before breaking into a nearby residence, holding a family hostage at gunpoint for several hours, sexually assaulting a woman, and stealing the family's vehicle. Authorities had previously removed Reyes-Martinez from the United States in 2012 before later discovering him illegally in Houston.

Two more illegal aliens were sentenced for illegal reentry after unlawfully returning to the United States. Nelson Alberto Fajardo, a Honduran illegal alien, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison after the court heard evidence of his criminal history, including convictions for burglary, aggravated assault, unlawful possession of a firearm, and shooting his girlfriend's estranged husband. Mexican illegal alien Juan Francisco Juarez-Rodriguez received a 57-month-term of imprisonment after repeatedly returning to the United States following his first removal in 1999 and accumulating convictions for offenses including burglary, drug charges, carrying a concealed weapon, battery, and another previous illegal reentry.

The cases are referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, ICE - Enforcement and Removal Operations, Border Patrol, Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, as well as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.

The 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 immigrants, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

Under current leadership, public safety and a secure border are the top priorities for the Southern District. Enhanced enforcement both at the border and in the interior of the district have yielded aliens engaged in unlawful activity or with serious criminal histories, including convictions for human trafficking, sexual assault, and violence against children.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas remains one of the busiest in the nation. It represents 43 counties and more than 10 million people covering 44,000 square miles. Assistant U.S. Attorneys from all seven divisions including Houston, Galveston, Victoria, Corpus Christi, Brownsville, McAllen, and Laredo work directly with our law enforcement partners on the federal, state, and local levels to prosecute the suspected offenders of these and other federal crimes.

An indictment or criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.