Mexican National Sentenced to 24 Months for Illegal Reentry

Jacksonville, Florida - Juan Jesus Mendoza (60, Mexico) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard to two years in federal prison for illegal reentry into the United States. Mendoza pleaded guilty on May 19, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.

According to court documents, Mendoza is a citizen of Mexico and was previously deported from the United States in 2002 and 2015. Mendoza was also previously convicted of two felony offenses. In 1994, Mendoza was convicted of aggravated possession of marijuana in Texas and sentenced to 25 years in prison, for which he was then paroled in 2002.

In 2013, after being encountered by law enforcement again in the United States, Mendoza was convicted of illegal reentry in the Orlando division of the Middle District of Florida. He has never obtained permission from the Attorney General or the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to apply for readmission to the United States. On March 21, 2026, law enforcement in Putnam County encountered Mendoza during a traffic stop, identified him as an alien unlawfully present in the United States, and contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David B. Mesrobian.