Mexican men arrested for illegal re-entry

BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Jose de Jesus Rodriguez Esparza, 32, and Mauricio Rangel Rangel, 48, both natives and citizens of Mexico, were arrested and charged in separate criminal complaints with illegal re-entry, which carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison and $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sasha Mascarenhas, who is handling the cases, stated that according to the criminal complaints, on October 16, 2025, Buffalo Border Patrol agents encountered the defendants in West Seneca, NY, as they attempted to conduct traffic stops of the vehicles they were riding in. When the vehicle Rodiguez Esparza was riding in pulled over, five individuals got out and began running towards a wooded area. As agents approached, Rodiguez Esparza admitted to being a citizen of Mexico without any valid immigration documents. A records check determined that he was previously removed from the United States in September 2016. When agents approached the vehicle Rangel was riding in, he stated that he did not have any valid immigration documents allowing him to stay in the United States. A records check determined that Rangel was previously removed from the United States in 2014.

Rodriguez Esparza and Rangel made initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder, Jr. and were detained.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

The complaint is of the result of an investigation by United States Border Patrol Buffalo Station, under the direction Patrol Agent-in-Charge David Banks.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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