UNITED STATES ATTORNEY ALICE H. MARTIN NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA
	FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE			CONTACT: KAREN NARAMORE
	MAY 1, 2009			PHONE: (205) 244-2001
	www.usdoj.gov/usao/aln			FAX: (205) 244-2171

MEXICAN ALIEN CHARGED FOR ILLEGALLY
RE-ENTERING THE U.S.AFTER HAVING COMMITTED FELONY OFFENSE

BIRMINGHAM, AL - MARCO ANTONIO-HERNANDEZ-ESPINOZA, 35, of Mexico, was indicted by a federal grand jury today in U.S. District Court. United States Attorney Alice H. Martin of the Northern District of Alabama and Philip Miller, Acting Field Office Director, Office of Detention and Removal, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, announce HERNANDEZ-ESPINOZA has been charged in a one-count indictment today for re-entry into the United States after having been deported.

The Indictment charges HERNANDEZ-ESPINOZA with illegally re-entering the United States on August 20, 2008 without having received the permission of the U.S. Attorney General of the United States or the Secretary of Homeland Security.   HERNANDEZ-ESPINOZA had previously been convicted of an aggravated felony after having been deported on October 16, 2006, from the El Paso, Texas Port of Entry.

The maximum sentence for re-entry into the country after deportation without permission by an alien who had previously been convicted of an aggravated felony is not more than 20 years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.

“Felons with aggravated felonies will be swiftly prosecuted when they reenter this country, in violation of immigration laws,” stated U.S. Attorney Alice H. Martin. 
"ICE is committed to upholding our laws and preserving the integrity of our nation's immigration system," said Philip Miller, Acting Field Office Director, of ICE’s Detention and Removal Office in New Orleans. "As a country, we welcome law-abiding immigrants, but foreign nationals who violate our laws and commit crimes in our communities should be on notice that ICE is going to use all of the tools at its disposal to find you and send you home."
U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents successfully worked this case. Assistant United States Attorney Frank M. Salter is prosecuting the matter on behalf of the United States.

Members of the public are reminded that the indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

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