Another significant week in support of Operation Take Back America: SDTX charges 373 more as part of ongoing border enforcement actions

HOUSTON - The Southern District of Texas has filed 371 cases in immigration and related matters from March 13-19, announced Acting U.S. Attorney John G.E. Marck.

A total of 22 people are charged with human smuggling crimes. Another 141 criminal complaints allege instances of illegal entry, while 204 people face charges of felony reentry after prior removal. Most of those individuals have prior felonies such as narcotics, violent crime, immigration crimes and more. The remaining six cases involve firearms charges and other immigration crimes.

Two charged in recent days are Mexican nationals with felony criminal histories to include injury to a child or the elderly, or aggravated assault, according to the allegations. Ivis Anibal Olvera-Moreno and Carlos Alberto Chairez-Estala had allegedly been removed July 11 and July 19, 2025, according to their respective charges. However, law enforcement allegedly discovered them in the McAllen area without authorization to be in the United States.

Authorities found another foreign national from Mexico near Donna, despite also having been previously removed within the past year. The criminal complaint alleges Daniel Davalos-Ayala has multiple prior convictions for illegal reentry, possession with intent to distribute and unauthorized use of a vehicle.

Another case alleges Jorge Armando Pineda-Samaniego, Mexico, has a prior conviction for illegal reentry and was previously removed May 9, 2018. Authorities allegedly discovered him again near Edinburg.

All four are charged with felony reentry after removal and face up to 20 years in federal prison, if convicted.

In addition to the new cases, Mexican national Fernando Ramirez-Noria was ordered to serve 84 months in federal prison for his illegal reentry conviction. The court considered his criminal history while unlawfully present in the United States, including convictions for domestic violence, driving while intoxicated and illegal reentry. Authorities first removed him in January 2015, but he repeatedly returned. Law enforcement found him again in the country following a 2023 DWI arrest.

In Houston, Jose Rosario Belmontes-Lira pleaded guilty and was sentenced for unlawful reentry into the United States. He has prior convictions for burglary, driving while intoxicated and illegal reentry. Law enforcement discovered him in January in Houston without authorization to be in the country. Also sentenced was Honduran national Alex Ramon Reyes. He has prior convictions for possession of a controlled substance, theft and human smuggling.

These cases were 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 and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.

The cases are all 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, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

Under current leadership, public safety and a secure border are the top priorities for this 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 nine 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.