Illegal immigrant sentenced to time served, faces state charges




Peter Boylan, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Wed, December 21, 2022 at 12:05 PM EST



Dec. 21—A 34-year-old deported immigrant who somehow found his way back to Hawaii from Mexico and was found sleeping in a car in Kona was sentenced to time served by a federal judge Monday—eight months after being held in custody.

A 34-year-old deported immigrant who somehow found his way back to Hawaii from Mexico and was found sleeping in a car in Kona was sentenced to time served by a federal judge Monday—eight months after being held in custody.

Martin Medina Macias was indicted May 5 and on Aug. 23 pleaded guilty to a single federal charge of "reentry of removed alien." He did not enter into a plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice. In addition to time served, Macias was sentenced to two years of supervised release, but a new deportation proceeding is expected in the case.

Macias must also answer for criminal charges at the state level.

Macias was sentenced to two years of "supervised release, " not probation. "A new deportation proceeding is expected in the case."

Macias, who was born in Jalisco, Mexico, in 1988, was deported Feb. 12, 2020, following a 2014 felony conviction in state court. It is not clear how Macias got back into the country.

Before he had been deported, Macias came to the attention of Homeland Security Investigations after a source reported that a Mexican national, later identified as Macias, "may be residing in the United States without proper documentation ; specifically in Kailua-Kona, " according to federal court documents.

On Dec. 30, 2019, an HSI agent interviewed Macias after he was arrested by the Hawaii Police Department for a traffic violation and transported to the Kona Police Station.

Macias originally told the HSI agent that he was born in Nevada and was a U.S. citizen, according to the criminal complaint against him.

The HSI agent presented evidence that Macias was lying, and Macias then admitted "he was born in Mexico and was brought to the United States at a young age." Macias allegedly told the HSI agent that after entering the United States, he was never able to adjust his status "because of his multiple prior arrests."

Macias has at least 15 criminal and traffic violations at the state level, including abuse of a household member, promoting a dangerous drug, car theft and drunken driving. He has pending criminal cases connected to a 2014 first-degree robbery investigation and a 2019 driving-without-a-license incident, according to the complaint.

The HSI agent placed Macias under administrative arrest for violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Macias was transported to Kona International Airport and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities, who took him to Honolulu.

On Feb. 7, 2020, Macias was served a "Warning to Alien Ordered Removed or Deported " that advised him that he was "prohibited from entering, attempting to enter, or being in the United States for a period of 10 years from the date of your departure from the United States."

Macias had been given the option to leave the U.S. voluntarily, but in February 2020 he was physically removed to Mexico via San Ysidro, Calif., according to the complaint.

On Feb. 7 two Hawaii police officers found Macias sleeping in a parked car on a roadway in Kailua-Kona, according to an affidavit in support of the federal criminal complaint that charged him with a single count of reentering the country.

Macias told the officers his name was James Lopez and that he was born April 4, 1988. He allegedly refused to provide proof to the officers that he was James Lopez, and started the car despite warnings from officers to turn it off.

Macias "put the vehicle into gear and began to accelerate at a high rate of speed, " according to the federal complaint.

The officers avoided being struck.

The officers were able to query law enforcement databases and confirmed that "James Lopez " was Macias.

Macias' attorney, Assistant Federal Public Defender Maximilian J. Mizono, did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Darren W.K. Ching, who prosecuted the case for the government, declined comment.




https://www.yahoo.com/news/illegal-i...170500085.html