The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, announced today that a 31- year-old native and citizen of Guatemala has been charged with Illegal Reentry into the United States.

     According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, Gamaliel Escobar-Mendez, age 31, a native and citizen of Guatemala in the United States illegally, was charged in a one-count indictment by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg today.

     The indictment alleges that Escobar-Mendez, an alien who after a 2007 Franklin County conviction for Homicide by Vehicle While Driving Under the Influence was previously arrested and deported from the United States on March 12, 2009, did knowingly and unlawfully reenter the United States. He was located by federal immigration agents in Franklin County, Pennsylvania.

     If convicted, Escobar-Mendez faces a maximum sentence of up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

     This investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian G. McDonnell.

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An Indictment or Information is not evidence of guilt but simply a description of the charge made by the Grand Jury and/or United States Attorney against a defendant. A charged Defendant is presumed innocent until a jury returns a unanimous finding that the United States has proven the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt or until the defendant has pled guilty to the charges.

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