ILLEGAL ALIEN TO SERVE FEDERAL PRISON SENTENCE

Juan Ayala-Gomez, 44, a citizen of Mexico who was living in Caldwell, will serve 40 months in federal prison for illegally re-entering the United States and unlawfully possessing a firearm, U.S. Attorney Tom Moss announced.

Ayala-Gomez was arrested in January of this year after immigration agents discovered he was illegally in the United States. Agents also searched his home in Caldwell, where they found an SKS rifle. Ayala-Gomez admitted entering the United States illegally and said that he owned the SKS rifle.

Ayala-Gomez pleaded guilty to federal charges in May. He was sentenced on Monday by U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the Federal Courthouse in Boise. Because Ayala- Gomez had a prior felony conviction, he received a higher prison sentence.