U.S. Attorney announces immigration case updates for the Eastern District of Virginia

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, announced significant case updates on nine immigration cases in the district.

On Jan. 20 the President signed executive orders addressing the enforcement of U.S. immigration laws. Protecting the American People Against Invasion recognized that enforcing our Nation’s immigration laws is critically important to the national security and public safety of the United States, and that it is the policy of the United States to faithfully execute the immigration laws against all inadmissible and removable aliens, particularly those aliens who threaten the safety or security of the American people. The order tasked the Department of Justice with prioritizing the prosecution of criminal offenses related to the unauthorized entry or continued unauthorized presence of aliens in the United States. Securing Our Borders prioritizes the pursuit of criminal charges against illegal aliens who violate immigration laws and against those who facilitate their unlawful presence in the United States.

In May 1997, Guatemalan national Enrique Montesflores España, 49, was apprehended by U.S. Customs and Border Protection for entering the United States without inspection, and in February 1998, an Immigration Judge ordered him removed. Montesflores España failed to surrender, however, and became an immigration fugitive for over ten years. In July 2008, after an arrest in Arlington County for peeping or spying into a dwelling or enclosure, Montesflores España was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and removed pursuant to the final order of removal. In November 2008, Montesflores España illegally reentered the United States, and on Dec. 5, 2008, pursuant to the prior order of removal, Montesflores España was removed from the United States again. Following his second removal, Montesflores España again illegally reentered the United States. On Jan. 30, ICE agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement learned that Montesflores España had been detained at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Facility on charges of solicitation by electronic means of a child of at least 15 years of age and attempted engagement in consensual sexual acts with a child of at least 15 years of age. On April 30, Montesflores España pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal and remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-111. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Fisher prosecuted this case.

On May 5, 2017, pursuant to a final order of removal, Honduran national Esteban Amado Diaz Alvarez, 29, was removed from the United States after he was convicted of carnal knowledge of a child aged 14 (2016, City of Alexandria). On an unknown date after his prior removal, Diaz Alvarez illegally reentered the United States. On Feb. 9, 2025, ICE agents learned that Diaz Alvarez was illegally present in the United States after he was stopped by Fairfax County Police. On May 1, 2025, Diaz Alvarez pled guilty to failing to register as a sex offender and illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal subsequent to a conviction for an aggravated felony. He remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-87. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathaniel Lowry prosecuted this case.

On Aug. 30, 2019, pursuant to a final order of removal, Salvadoran national Jose Edenilson Campos-Guzman, 25, was removed from the United States after being convicted of possession of marijuana, disorderly conduct, and being drunk in public (2018, Fairfax County). On Aug. 5, 2022, ICE agents learned that Campos-Guzman was illegally present in the United States. Campos-Guzman was convicted of being drunk in public and disorderly conduct (2022, Arlington County), and, again, being drunk in public (2023, Arlington County), and possession of Schedule III drugs (2023, Arlington County). On March 18, Campos-Guzman pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal and remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-49. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Galarza prosecuted this case.

On Nov. 16, 2012, pursuant to a final order of removal, Guatemalan national Juan Antonio Garcia-Julian, 38, was removed from the United States. On Nov. 25, 2021, ICE agents learned that Garcia-Julian had been detained in Prince William County, and on April 10 ICE officers arrested him. On May 20, Garcia-Julian pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal and remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-130. Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob Mercer and Alex Amico prosecuted this case.

On August 25, 2005, pursuant to a final order of removal, Salvadoran national Manuel Angel Henriquez-Escalante, 46, was removed from the United States. On July 23, 2021, pursuant to the prior order of removal, Henriquez-Escalante was removed from the United States again. Following his second removal, Henriquez-Escalante again illegally reentered the United States. On April 18, 2024, ICE agents learned that Henriquez-Escalante had been arrested in Fairfax. On May 14, Henriquez-Escalante pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a removal subsequent to a felony conviction. Case No. 1:25-CR-64. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Madison Albrecht prosecuted this case.

ICE agents first encountered Colombian national Mario Yunior Valencia-Asprilla, 40, in Harris County, Texas, after his arrest for armed robbery. On April 24, 2017, pursuant to a final order of removal, Valencia-Asprilla was removed from the United States. On March 29, 2021, ICE discovered that Valencia-Asprilla was illegally present in the United States after he was arrested in Fairfax County and later convicted of burglary and attempting to enter a house to commit assault and battery. Upon release from state custody, ICE arrested Valencia-Asprilla on Dec. 23, 2024. On Feb. 13, Valencia-Asprilla pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal and he remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-7. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Bolzman prosecuted this case.

On May 5, 2002, pursuant to a final order of removal, Guatemalan national Claudio Abel Oliva Mendez, 40, was removed from the United States. Oliva Mendez illegally reentered the United States and in May 2005 was convicted of driving while intoxicated (DWI). He was convicted of DWI again in September 2006. In June 2007, he was convicted of false identification. In June 2008, Oliva Mendez was convicted again for DWI. In July 2008, the defendant was convicted of assault and battery of a family member. Pursuant to the prior order of removal, Oliva Mendez was removed from the United States on Sept. 23, 2008, and again on Nov. 28, 2008. Oliva Mendez again illegally reentered the United States and was convicted of DWI in April 2011. In January 2012, Oliva Mendez was convicted of illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal, and he was removed again on Oct. 2, 2012. Oliva Mendez illegally reentered the United States again and, in April 2014, was convicted of one count of identity theft and three felony counts of forging public records in Arlington County. On Dec. 23, 2014, pursuant to the prior order of removal, Oliva Mendez again was removed from the United States. ICE agents learned that Oliva Mendez had been convicted of felony probation violations in Arlington County in April 2024. On March 27, Oliva Mendez pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal and remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-61. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Max Willner-Giwerc prosecuted this case.

Following convictions for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, drinking while driving, and possession of marijuana, on Jan. 27, 2020, pursuant to a final order of removal, Salvadoran national Ulices Martinez Melendez, 29, was removed from the United States. On April 3, 2022. ICE agents learned that Martinez Melendez had returned to the United States when he was arrested for being drunk in public and then fingerprinted at the Fairfax County Detention Center. On May 20, Martinez Melendez pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal and remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-135. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Lowry prosecuted this case.

Following a conviction in Michigan in 2012 for felony identity theft, pursuant to a final order of removal, Honduran national Walter Lagos-Duron, 38, was removed from the United States on May 24, 2013. On July 13, 2024, ICE agents learned that Lagos-Duron had returned to the United States when they encountered him in Fauquier County. On May 12, Lagos-Duron pled guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a previous removal and he remains subject to the prior order of removal. Case No. 1:25-CR-93. Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zakeria Haidary and Meredith Clement and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Morgan prosecuted this case.

Operation Take Back America is 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.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. 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 the case number provided above.