Jury convicts illegal alien from Honduras for unlawfully possessing a firearm

RICHMOND, Va. – A federal jury convicted a Honduran national today on charges of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien.

According to court records and evidence presented at trial, in 2016, law enforcement encountered Joel L. Ayala-Rivera, 22, near Hidalgo, Texas, after he unlawfully crossed the border as an unaccompanied juvenile. He was placed in removal proceedings and was released from custody to the care of his mother. In or about February of 2023, Ayala-Rivera was again encountered and taken into custody by Border Patrol in Texas. In May of 2023, an immigration judge adjudged him to be an alien present in the United States without being admitted or paroled. The judge released Ayala-Rivera from immigration detention on a cash bond.

On April 15, 2024, at an apartment in Richmond, the FBI conducted a controlled purchase in which Ayala-Rivera sold a handgun. As an illegal alien, Ayala-Rivera cannot lawfully possess firearms.

Ayala-Rivera faces up to 15 years in prison when sentenced on Aug. 25, and he remains subject to the prior order of removal. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI’s Richmond Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Richmond Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Angela Mastandrea and Patrick J. McGorman are prosecuting the case.

This case is 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, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:26-cr-14.