Ecuadorian National Sentenced for Illegal Reentry

BOSTON – An Ecuadorian national illegally residing in Yarmouth was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for unlawfully reentering the United States after deportation.

Jose Tomas Lema Pugo, a/k/a Jose Luis Ledezma, 59, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin to time served (approximately six weeks in prison) and one year of supervised release. He is subject to deportation upon completion of the sentence imposed. Earlier in the hearing, Lema Pugo pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful reentry of a deported alien. Lema Pugo was arrested by immigration authorities on May 9, 2025 and indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2025.

Lema Pugo was deported from the United States to Ecuador in November 2013. Sometime after his November 2013 removal, Lema Pugo illegally reentered the United States without permission.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Patricia H. Hyde, Field Office Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations in Boston made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Zacks of the Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.