District of Arizona Charges 288 Individuals for Immigration-Related Criminal Conduct this Week

PHOENIX, Ariz. – During the week of enforcement operations from April 17 through April 24, 2026, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona brought immigration-related criminal charges against 288 individuals. Specifically, the United States filed 147 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the United States, and the United States also charged 113 aliens for illegally entering the United States. In its ongoing effort to deter unlawful immigration, the United States filed 24 cases against 28 individuals responsible for smuggling illegal aliens into and within the District of Arizona.

These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE-ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Recent matters of interest include:

United States v. Jesus Jose Alvarez-Ramirez. On April 24, 2026, Jesus Jose Alvarez-Ramirez was charged by criminal complaint with Bringing an Alien to the United States Unlawfully. On April 23, a U.S. Border Patrol Agent responded to a radio call about three individuals traveling near Dateland, Arizona. When the agent approached the group, which included Alvarez-Ramirez, another adult male, and an unaccompanied male juvenile, they were attempting to conceal themselves in brush to avoid detection. Agents determined that Alvarez-Ramirez acted as a foot guide for the group, bringing them from Mexico into the United States. They also learned that Alvarez-Ramirez’s fee for crossing was waived and that he would eventually receive payment for acting as a foot guide. It was determined the three individuals were citizens of Mexico, all unlawfully present in the United States. [Case number: 26-MJ-01328]

These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

RELEASE NUMBER:    2026-067_April 24, 2026, Immigration Enforcement

(note PR originally sent out as #068 to media)

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/

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