Illegal Re-entry Defendant Sentenced

Contact Person: Bill Day (803) 929-3000

Columbia, South Carolina -----United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that ABIZAHI GARDUNO-RIVERA, a/k/a “Afrain Guzman,” age 34, of Mexico, was sentenced in federal court in Columbia, South Carolina, for Illegal Re-Entry.  United States District Judge Childs of Columbia, South Carolina sentenced to eighteen months in federal custody to be followed by three years supervised release. The Defendant is also required to surrender for Deportation by Homeland Security when he completes his sentence.

Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that Garduno-Rivera is a citizen of Mexico and was initially deported in October 1998. In September 2002, he was located in Georgia where he was serving a 12 year sentence for Trafficking in Cocaine. Following completion of his sentence, Garduno-Rivera was again deported in May 2006. On September 5, 2013, he was arrested by the Aiken County Sheriff's office for Trafficking Methamphetamine, Possession of Hydrocodone, and 3 counts of Possession of a Weapon During a Violent Crime.  The U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was contacted when it was discovered Garduno-Rivera was in the United States illegally.

Mr. Nettles stated the maximum penalty for illegal re-entry is imprisonment for 20 years and/or a fine of $250,000.

The case was investigated by the Aiken County Sherriff's Office and ICE.  Assistant United States Attorney William E. Day, II of the Columbia is prosecuting the case.