Mexican Man Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Reentry by an Alien Removed After Conviction of a Felony

Gulfport, Miss. - A Mexican national pleaded guilty to the federal felony offense of unlawful reentry by an alien deported or removed after conviction of a felony.

U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca of the Southern District of Mississippi, and Jason E. Schneider, Chief Patrol Agent of the U.S. Border Patrol’s New Orleans Sector, made the announcement. 

According to court documents, Joel Davila-Alvarado, 49, of Mexico, was arrested on July 15, 2021, on Interstate 10 eastbound in Harrison County.  Following a U.S. Border Patrol investigation, a Border Patrol Agent conducted a vehicle stop and identified one of the passengers as Joel Davila-Alvarado.  Davila-Alvarado was determined to be illegally present in the United States.  After being advised that he was under arrest, Davila-Alvarado fled from the scene on foot, but was rapidly apprehended by the Border Patrol and placed into federal custody.

An investigation revealed that in 2004, Davila-Alvarado was lawfully removed from the United States to his home nation of Mexico.  He unlawfully reentered the U.S. and, in 2009, he was convicted of the federal felony offense of reentering the U.S. after deportation without authorization and was sentenced to 8 months in prison.  Thereafter, he was physically removed again from the United States.  He again unlawfully reentered the U.S. in 2019 and was physically removed again from the U.S. to Mexico. 

Davila-Alvarado is scheduled to be sentenced on February 17, 2022.  He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  After completing any sentence of incarceration, Davila-Alvarado is subject to Homeland Security proceedings to remove him from the United States.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Border Patrol. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan Harris is the prosecutor for the case.