Illegal Alien from Mexico Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Reentry After Removal

Gulfport, Miss. – Jose Guadalupe Perez-Velasquez, 29, an illegal from Mexico, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola, Jr. to “time served,” effectively 121 days in federal prison, and one year of supervised release, for the crime of unlawful reentry by an alien after removal, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, and Scott Sutterfield, Acting Field Office Director of Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in New Orleans.  

Upon release from his federal prison sentence, Guadalupe Perez-Velasquez will remain in the administrative detention custody of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration & Customs Enforcement.  He will face removal proceedings to remove him from the United States back to his home nation of Mexico.  As a result of this felony conviction, if Perez-Velasquez were to unlawfully return to the United States, he could face up to ten years in federal prison.  Further, if he were to unlawfully return again to the United States during his 1-year term of supervised release, he could face separate penalties consecutive to imprisonment from additional prosecution. 

On March 25, 2019, the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office notified ICE that Perez-Velasquez had been arrested for misdemeanor offenses of domestic disturbance of family and false information to law enforcement.  Harrison County officials said Perez-Velasquez had confessed to being an illegal alien from Mexico.  Perez-Velasquez was arrested by ICE and transported to the Gulfport ICE Office.

Further investigation revealed that Perez-Velasquez was originally removed from the United States to his home nation of Mexico on November 2, 2009.  Subsequently, Perez-Velasquez illegally reentered the United States and was removed again.  On August 16, 2010, he was encountered by ICE officials near Milledgeville, Georgia, and was again removed to Mexico on September 4, 2010. 

 U.S. Attorney Hurst praised the cooperation exhibited by the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, Enforcement Removal Operations, and the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department.  Assistant United States Attorney Stan Harris is the prosecutor for this case.