News and Press Releases
Prosecutions continue in illegal entry cases
involving those with prior criminal records
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 14, 2011
MINNEAPOLIS – In the District of Minnesota, separate indictments have been filed
against two Mexican nationals who entered the United States illegally after being deported as
criminals. Recently in federal court, two individuals were charged with one count of illegal reentry
after deportation.
Roman Ernesto Luna-Almaraz, age 35, was charged in the first case. His indictment
alleges that on July 16, 2008, he was found in the U.S. illegally after having been previously
deported to Mexico. Luna-Almaraz’s deportation followed a 1997 Minnesota conviction for
aiding and abetting the sale of cocaine. The current federal indictment resulted from his July 16,
2008, arrest for second-degree assault, aggravated forgery, and felon in possession of a firearm.
While serving his sentence for those crimes, he was identified as an illegal alien.
If convicted, Luna-Almaraz faces a potential maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
All sentences will be determined by a federal district court judge. This case is the result of an
investigation by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (“ICE ERO”) and the Mower
County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Colin P.
Johnson.
In the second case, Jose Velasquez-Velasquez, age 42, of Brooklyn Center, was charged
with having been found in the U.S. illegally on November 17, 2011, after being previously
deported to Mexico. Velasquez-Velasquez’s deportation followed convictions in 1992 and 1994
in Florida for sale of cocaine and illegal re-entry after deportation. The current federal
indictment resulted from a November 17, 2011, arrest for driving with no license. He was in the
Hennepin County Jail when he was identified as an illegal alien though ICE’s Criminal Alien
Program (“CAP”). The goal of that program is to locate criminal aliens incarcerated in federal
and state prisons, as well as local jails, and prevent them from being released into the general
population.
If convicted, Velasquez-Velasquez faces a potential maximum penalty of 20 years. All
sentences will be determined by a federal district court judge. This case is the result of an
investigation by ICE ERO and the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly M. Hare.
The two men will remain in custody until their current federal cases are resolved, and
will be deported after serving their sentences.
To learn more about the CAP,
visit www.ice.gov/criminal-alien-program/
An indictment is a determination by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe that offenses have been committed by a defendant. A defendant, of course, is presumed innocent until he or she pleads guilty or is proven guilty at trial.
