A man who illegally re-entered the United States from Mexico was sentenced on February 25, 2010, to more than five years in federal prison.

Mario Robles Vasquez, age 33, from Des Moines, Iowa, received the prison term after a November 5, 2009, guilty plea to one count of illegal re-entry to the United States after being convicted of a felony.

Robles Vasquez was arrested on July 25, 2009, in Hamilton County, Iowa, for open container, falsifying public documents and other assorted traffic offenses. A detainer was placed on him by Immigration and Customs Enforcement after record checks indicated he had previously been removed from the United States.

At the guilty plea, Robles Vasquez admitted he had been deported twice. The first time after a September 3, 1998, Polk County, Iowa, conviction for conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance, and the second time after a March 28, 2003, federal conviction for re-entry after deportation.

Robles Vasquez was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett. Robles Vasquez was sentenced to 71 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

Robles Vasquez is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Fletcher and investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 09-CR-3035.

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