Manuel Vasquez-Mongia, a 32-year-old Mexican national, has been sentenced to 13 months in federal prison for illegal reentry into the United States. Following his prison term, he will be subject to three years of supervised release. This sentencing follows his guilty plea on charges related to the illegal reentry of a removed alien.
Court records reveal that from 2011 to 2015, Vasquez-Mongia was discovered illegally residing in the U.S. on seven occasions. Each time he was ordered by an immigration judge to return to Mexico and was barred from reentering the country for periods ranging from five to twenty years.
On October 15, 2015, after a seventh illegal entry, Vasquez-Mongia was convicted of transporting illegal aliens and served six months in federal prison before being deported again with a permanent ban on reentry.
Nearly ten years later, on September 11, 2024, he was arrested once more in Indianapolis after his eighth unlawful entry into the U.S., marking his fifth federal conviction related to immigration offenses.
“Vasquez-Mongia has repeatedly shown blatant disregard for the law,” said John E. Childress, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “Despite multiple deportations and warnings not to return, he reentered almost immediately—even bringing others with him. He clearly thought he could evade justice, but today’s sentence proves otherwise. We will continue working with ICE and our partners to locate and remove individuals who illegally enter our country.”
The investigation leading to this conviction involved Immigration Customs and Enforcement along with the U.S. Marshals Service Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force. The sentencing was delivered by U.S. District Judge James P. Hanlon.
Acting U.S. Attorney Childress expressed gratitude towards Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith Wood for prosecuting this case.
This legal action is part of Operation Take Back America—a Department of Justice initiative focused on countering illegal immigration and dismantling transnational criminal organizations while safeguarding communities against violent crime perpetrators.
