CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Federal prosecutors in South Texas filed 299 new immigration and border security cases in the final week of January, U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei announced. From Jan. 23-29, authorities charged 169 people with felony reentry after removal and another 108 with illegal entry allegations. Most defendants have felony convictions for narcotics, violent crime and various immigration crimes. The cases also include 26 individuals accused of human smuggling and four others facing different charges.
Two Mexican nationals received significant federal prison sentences during this period. Javier Andres Rivera was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for illegally reentering the country without authorization. Rivera has prior convictions for aggravated robbery with a firearm, possession of more than 50 pounds of marijuana, terroristic threats, and illegal reentry. He was first removed in 2011 and illegally returned three times. In Laredo, Erik Villegas Cusi received a 51-month prison sentence for conspiring with others in Mexico to smuggle fentanyl and cocaine during a family trip. Authorities discovered the drugs hidden in an aftermarket compartment in the undercarriage of his vehicle as he entered the United States with his wife and minor son.
The cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that uses the full resources of the Department of Justice to address illegal immigration, eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect communities from violent crime perpetrators. Multiple federal agencies referred or supported these cases, 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. State and local law enforcement partners provided additional assistance.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas remains one of the busiest in the nation, representing 43 counties and more than nine million people covering 44,000 square miles. Assistant U.S. Attorneys from seven divisions, including Houston, Galveston, Victoria, Corpus Christi, Brownsville, McAllen, and Laredo, work with federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to prosecute federal crimes. Enhanced enforcement at the border and within the district has targeted individuals engaged in unlawful activity or with serious criminal histories, including convictions for human trafficking, sexual assault and violence against children.
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