Mexican Man Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Return to the United States After Removal and Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person

Jackson, Miss. – A Mexican man pleaded guilty to unlawful return to the United States after removal, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, announced U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Acting Special Agent in Charge Eric DeLaune of Homeland Security Investigations in New Orleans.

According to court documents, on March 23, 2023, the Pearl Police Department received a report of an intoxicated man with a gun at a Pearl apartment complex. Law enforcement officers responded to the area and located Antonio Andrade-Hernandez, 36, with a gun pointed at his head. With small children in the immediate area around Andrade-Hernandez, law enforcement was able to get him to surrender peacefully. A records check revealed that Andrade-Hernandez was an illegal alien who had previously been removed from the United States. Additionally, since Andrade-Hernandez is a Mexican national illegally in the United States, it is contrary to federal law for him to possess any firearm. 

Andrade-Hernandez is scheduled to be sentenced on December 12, 2023, and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Pearl Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam T. Stuart is prosecuting the case.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.