Two Honduran men plead guilty to, sentenced for illegal re-entry

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Arlen Saul Castillo, 29, and Jonathan Esteban Osario Lopez, 32, both natives and citizens of Honduras, pleaded guilty before Chief U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford to illegal re-entry. They were then sentenced to time served and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Maeve E. Huggins, who handled the case, stated that Arlen Saul Castillo and Jonathan Esteban Osario Lopez are citizens and nationals of Honduras without any legal status in the United States. On October 8, 2025, Border Patrol encountered the defendants in Erie County, NY. They did have any documents allowing them to be legally present in the United States. In December 2018, Saul Castillo was physically removed from the United States. Jonathan Esteban Osario Lopez was physically removed from the United States in August 2013 and December 2013.

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 pleas and sentencings are the result of an investigation by Customs and Border Protection U.S. Border Patrol, under the direction of Acting Chief Patrol Agent James D’Amato and Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan.

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