New defendants charged with violating federal immigration laws include alleged rapist & murderer, transnational gang member, drug trafficker

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio announced today four new immigration convictions and charges pending against an additional five defendants for allegedly violating federal immigration law. New defendants include a man with pending rape and sexual battery charges and a man who is alleged to be part of a transnational gang.

Sixto Garcia-Garcia, 34, was previously indicted by a grand jury in Franklin County with three counts of rape and one count of sexual battery. There is also a warrant for his arrest in Texas on charges for reckless homicide. These charges all remain pending. On Wednesday, he was charged federally with illegally reentering the United States. Garcia-Garcia is a citizen of Mexico and has no legal status in the United States.

Milton Guevara-Cruz, 31, is a citizen of El Salvador who allegedly reentered the United States illegally after deportation. Charging documents filed against Guevara-Cruz detail that he is a member of the violent 18^th Street transnational gang from El Salvador. It is alleged that he is a member of the gang’s Tyni Locos Surenos clique and has been arrested in El Salvador three times for related criminal activity.

A federal grand jury indicted Roberto Carlos Mar-Herrara, 33, yesterday. The Mexican national allegedly reentered the United States illegally twice following deportations. He is currently booked in the Franklin County Jail on felony drug trafficking charges. 

Jose Antonio Alvarenga, 43, is an El Salvadoran national who allegedly reentered the United States illegally after deportation. He was arrested outside of his home in New Lebanon, Ohio.

Agents encountered Ever Amador-Medina, 37, at the Butler County Jail. He is a native of Honduras and has no legal status in the United States. He was previously deported on two occasions, once from Atlanta and once from Houston. 

Four other defendants pleaded guilty in federal court in Columbus this week to federal immigration crimes. They include Elmer Edison Rodriguez-Guzman, 46; Sergio Gutierrez-Hernandez, 32; Mario Juarez-Iribe, 44; and Carlos Gonzales Hernandez, 55.

Illegally reentering the United States is a federal crime punishable by up to two years in prison. If the offender has a prior felony conviction (or multiple prior misdemeanor convictions of certain types), the penalty is increased to 10 years in prison, and if the offender has been previously convicted of an aggravated felony, the defendant faces up to 20 years in prison.

Kelly A. Norris, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Jared Murphey, acting Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Detroit; and Robert Lynch, Field Office Director, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Detroit Field Office; announced the charges. Deputy Criminal Chief Brian J. Martinez and Assistant United States Attorneys Sheila G. Lafferty, Anthony Springer, Noah R. Litton, Elizabeth Geraghty, Emily Czerniejewski and Erica Lunderman are representing the United States in these cases.

Charging documents merely contain allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

These cases are being prosecuted as part of the Southern District of Ohio Immigration Enforcement Task Force, which dedicates agents, attorneys and other staff to investigating and prosecuting immigration violations.

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