ALIEN PLEADS GUILTY TO ILLEGAL RE-ENTRY
ZERAFIN LOPEZ-ALLELA, age 44, a citizen of Mexico, pled guilty in federal court today before U. S. District Judge Lance M. Africk to a one-count indictment charging him with illegal re-entry by a removed alien, announced U. S. Attorney Jim Letten.
According to court documents, on September 18, 2011, LOPEZ, an alien who had previously been removed from the United States, was found in the United States, in Jefferson Parish within the Eastern District of Louisiana, without having obtained consent from the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to reapply for admission to the United States.
The indictment charging LOPEZ with one count of re-entry by a removed alien also included a notice of sentencing enhancement based on LOPEZ’s prior aggravated felony conviction. With the enhancement, the single count carries a maximum statutory penalty of twenty (20) years imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, and three (3) years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment. Sentencing is scheduled for March 8, 2012 at 2:00 P.M.
The case was investigated by U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations as part of Operation Cross Check, which targeted convicted criminal aliens. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U. S. Attorney Robert Weir.
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