3-time deported Mexican national sentenced to 11 years in prison
Biometric information revealed 8 aliases tied to this career criminal
HOUSTON - A Mexican national who had been deported three times by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), was sentenced on Monday to 11 years in prison. This sentence was announced by Kenneth L. Landgrebe, ICE's field office director in Houston.
Manuel Borja-Vega, 35, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas on July 23 to 132 months in prison for illegally re-entering the United States after being deported.
ICE and Harris County Sheriffs Office (HCSO) 287(g) officers conducting research on Borja-Vega uncovered eight separate aliases tied to the same biometric information. He used the following aliases to commit crimes to avoid detection by law enforcement: Carlos Ortega, Miguel Gomez-Boria, Bertin Aveja-Granados, Samuel Vega, Andres M. Orrostieta, Mauel Borja-Vega, Nau Berduzco-Pena and Navor Reynosa-Vega.
Borja-Vega was arrested on Aug. 19, 2009, for driving while intoxicated with a child passenger. An examination of indices conducted by 287(g) program officers assigned to HCSO revealed an extensive criminal history on Borja-Vega starting in 1994. His past convictions include: four separate convictions for driving while intoxicated; unlawfully carrying a weapon; terroristic threats; evading arrest and detention; assault causing bodily injury; transporting illegal aliens; and four separate convictions for unlawfully entering the U.S. after being deported.
Anyone who re-enters the United States after being formally deported commits a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
"This case involves a career criminal alien who was previously able to avoid apprehension under assumed names," said Landgrebe. "The 287(g) program coupled with Secure Communities technology reflects the value of these programs through cooperation between ICE and local law enforcement agencies. These programs will lead to identifying, arresting and prosecuting other criminals who attempt to hide under false identities and threaten public safety."
This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Texas.
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