8-time deported illegal immigrant goes to federal prison
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He stole a taser when deputies tried to arrest him. (Source: Cook Co. Sheriff)
February 21, 2020 at 4:21 PM EST - Updated February 21 at 4:21 PM
ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - A Mexican national with prior convictions for illegal reentry into the United States and transporting illegal immigrants was sentenced to four years and four months in prison for illegal reentry and violation of supervised release in Albany Federal Court this week.
Charles ‘Charlie’ Peeler, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Ga., said that Pedro Santos-Garcia, 42, of Mexico, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Louis Sands on Thursday after Santos-Garcia entered a guilty plea on July 30, 2019, to one count of illegal reentry.
The indictment shows that Santos-Garcia had been deported and removed from the United States eight times before.
Santos-Garcia was found to have violated his supervised release on April 29, 2019, when deputies with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office in Adel, arrested him on driving and obstruction offenses.
He gave officers a false ID, pushed the officer’s hands away, fled across I-75, crossed multiple lanes of traffic, jumped the concrete median and crossed to the other side of the interstate.
Deputies took off after him, and he took a deputy’s taser. During the struggle, one deputy suffered a broken wrist.
“I want to thank our law enforcement partners across the Middle District of Georgia who put their lives on the line protecting us every day. I want to especially commend the Cook County Sheriff’s Office for their service and bravery in this case,” said U.S. Attorney Peeler.
“This case illustrates that there is good reason to enforce immigration laws in the United States, and it is especially important to enforce our immigration laws when an offender is committing other crimes while in the United States illegally. This is about protecting the public, and dangerous criminals, illegal or legal, must be prevented from harming our communities,” Peeler said.
“This sentence should serve as a reminder that there are significant consequences for those who choose to reenter the country illegally, after being ordered removed,” said Thomas P. Giles, acting Field Office Director for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO) Atlanta. “ERO officers will continue to pursue criminal aliens seeking to circumvent U.S. laws.”
This case was investigated by the Cook County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Helmick prosecuted the case for the Government.
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