Honduran man sentenced for illegal re-entry into US
Seaborn Larson, Published 5:00 p.m. MT Aug. 31, 2017 | Updated 5:50 p.m. MT Aug. 31, 2017
After being deported four times previously from the United States, a Honduran man pleaded guilty in federal court in Great Falls for illegal re-entry into the country, and will soon be deported once again.
Ariel Ramos-Hernandez, 33, was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court in Great Falls to time served, 87 days, and given one year supervised release by Immigration Customs Enforcement. He is expected to begin the deportation process after being released to ICE following Thursday's hearing.
Great Falls police arrested Ramos-Hernandez on June 2 for disorderly conduct, according to court documents. Dispatch notes say officers responded to a downtown Great Falls business for a man refusing to leave and being disorderly. Officers were unable to identify him through local agencies, so they contacted Immigration Customs Enforcement.
ICE Officer Ronald T. Kinyon on June 5 obtained Ramos-Hernandez's fingerprints and booking photograph, and found in a federal database that he had encountered the Department of Homeland Security several times before.
In 2007, an Oakdale, Louisiana immigration judge ordered Ramos-Hernandez be deported from the U.S. and ordered him barred from entering the country for 10 years. He was officially removed from the U.S. on Nov. 28, 2007 from New Orleans, Louisiana, according to court documents.
In April 2011, a little less than four years later, Ramos-Hernandez was again found in the New Orleans area unlawfully. On April 13 he was issued a warning to leave the U.S., while a judge reportedly upped his expulsion from the states to 20 years, starting the clock in 2013. In May of that year, he was removed from Louisiana and returned to Honduras.
About six weeks later, Ramos-Hernandez was found in Texas and was issued a new 20-year prohibition from the U.S. He had been arrested by a border patrol agent near Knippa, Texas after crossing the Rio Grande, according to court documents. In late June, he was charged with illegal re-entry, a federal offense, and was sentenced to 60 days in federal prison. On Sept. 1, 2011, he was deported from San Antonio, Texas, and returned to the Honduras again.
Then in May 2012, officials reportedly found that Ramos-Hernandez illegally re-entered the U.S. via Del Rio, Texas. According to court documents, he was charged again with illegal re-entry and was sentenced to 180 days in a federal prison. On Nov. 1, 2012, Ramos-Hernandez was deported from Harlingen, Texas.
In June, after he was arrested by Great Falls police, an ICE agent obtained a warrant for his arrest and Ramos-Hernandez was charged with illegal re-entry of a removed alien, which carries a maximum prison term of two years and the possibility of a $250,000 fine, along with three years of supervised release.
Ramos-Hernandez on July 31 signed a plea agreement with federal prosecutors, agreeing to plead guilty to the charge while prosecutors agreed to recommend his offense level be decreased by two levels for accepting responsibility.
After he pleaded guilty to the charge through a Spanish translator, U.S. District Judge Brian Morris sentenced Ramos-Hernandez to time served and one year of supervised release under ICE. He was taken back into ICE custody and will begin the process of being deported back to Honduras. A spokesperson with the U.S. District Attorney's Office was unsure of when he will be deported, or if he will see another immigration judge, who might impose another period of time in which Ramos-Hernandez is barred from re-entering into the U.S. If he returns to the U.S., Ramos-Hernandez will be required to check in with a federal probation officer with ICE.
The Immigration Customs Enforcement's Helena District Office was closed when called by the Tribune Thursday afternoon.
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/sto...-us/620520001/
