Mexican Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Immigration Crime

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Gerardo Tomas-Avila, 32, a Mexican national, pleaded guilty today to reentry of a removed alien and was remanded to the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for deportation proceedings.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 19, 2022, ICE agents arrested Tomas-Avila in Elkview, Kanawha County, after identifying him in the course of an investigation. Tomas-Avila admitted that he was a citizen of Mexico in the United States illegally and that he had previously been deported from the United States. Tomas-Avila had no identification documents permitting him legal status in the United States.

Fingerprints matched Tomas-Avila to a prior administrative removal from the United States, which followed his arrest in Taylor County, Kentucky, on April 7, 2012. Tomas-Avila was deported to Mexico on June 8, 2012, following his conviction for driving under the influence in Taylor County, Kentucky, on April 23, 2012. Tomas-Avila never obtained the express consent of the Secretary of U.S. Homeland Security to reapply for admission to the United States, nor did he seek to reenter through other legal means.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

United States District Judge Irene C. Berger presided over the hearing, sentencing Tomas-Avila to the time he has served in custody since his August 19, 2022 arrest before remanding Tomas-Avila to ICE custody. Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:22-cr-171.

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