Jury Convicts Man for Being in United States Illegally

A man who was found illegally in the United States was convicted by a jury on July 18, 2017, after a 1 ½-day trial in federal court in Sioux City.

Ricardo, Cordova-Larios, 42, from Guatemala, was convicted of illegally residing in the United States. The verdict was returned this morning following about 30 minutes of jury deliberations.

The evidence at trial showed that Cordova-Larios was an illegal alien from Guatemala and was removed from the United States to Guatemala on or about March 4, 2014. Cordova-Larios was found in the United States on or about April 10, 2017, and did not receive the consent of the Secretary of Homeland Security to apply for readmission to the United States after his removal. The evidence also proved Cordova-Larios re-entered (likely in March 2014) the United States without permission after his removal.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Cordova-Larios remains in custody of the United States Marshal and will remain in custody pending sentencing. Cordova-Larios faces a possible maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $100 in special assessments, and up to one year of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.

The case file number is 17-4033.

Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.