Three Mexican men arrested, charged with illegal reentry

BUFFALO, N.Y.–U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Erasmo Perez Luiz, 30, Luis Gerardo Perez Lopez, 28, and Ismael Ivan Perez Lopez, 27, all citizens and nationals of Mexico, were arrested and charged by criminal complaint with illegal reentry, which carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Smith, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, on September 30, 2025, U.S. Border Patrol agents attempted to stop a vehicle that the defendants were riding in, in Amherst, NY. As agents approached the vehicle with emergency lights and sirens activated, the driver, Erasmo Perez Ruiz, fled at a high rate of speed, crossing a median, and nearly striking both agent and civilian vehicles in the process. After a brief chase, the vehicle pulled into a retail parking lot and the three defendants exited the vehicle and ran into a wooded area but were quickly apprehended. All three were illegally present in the United States.

Further investigation determined that Erasmo Perez Ruiz was physically removed from the United States two times in April 2014, Luis Gerardo Perez Lopez was physically removed in May 2018, and Ismael Ivan Perez Lopez was physically removed in May 2017.

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 defendants made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder, Jr. and were detained.

The complaints are the result of an investigation by U.S. Border Patrol, under the direction of 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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