Guatemalan national sentenced in Rhode Island for illegal re-entry

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - A Guatemalan national previously deported after being convicted of a violent crime has been sentenced in federal court in Providence to two years in federal prison for illegally re-entering the United States after deportation. The case was investigated jointly with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the East Providence Police Department.

Marlon Yobel Ruiz-Bardales, 24, pleaded guilty in December 2010 before U.S. District Court Chief Judge Mary M. Lisi to one count of illegal re-entry. The sentence was announced by U. S. Attorney for the District of Rhode Island Peter F. Neronha.

According to court documents and information presented to the court, Ruiz-Bardales was arrested by East Providence Police in August 2010, during a routine traffic stop where police determined that the defendant was wanted on an outstanding state warrant and that he had been previously deported to Guatemala. East Providence Police notified ICE who immediately placed a detainer on Ruiz-Bardales.

According to court documents, Ruiz-Bardales was deported in January 2010, after being convicted in state court for assaulting a Johnston restaurant owner and a customer with a knife in December 2007.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Zechariah Chafee.