Mexican national pleads guilty to illegal reentry into the US

TAMPA, Fla. – An investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement led to Juan Garcia Xinol, 27, an illegal alien from Mexico, pleading guilty to illegally reentering the United Sates after being previously removed.

Garcia Xinol’s sentencing hearing is set for May 23, where he faces a maximum penalty of two years in federal prison. ICE determined that Garcia Xinol is a native and citizen of Mexico and that he was originally removed from the U.S. on Oct. 6, 2020. He is present in the U.S. without having been admitted or paroled after inspection by an immigration officer.

Garcia Xinol was arrested and booked into the Pinellas County Jail for possession of methamphetamine, providing a false name to police officers, and four other Polk County warrants in December 2022. Garcia Xinol was again arrested by local law enforcement in May 2024, for a violation of probation relating to a domestic battery, and was found in the Polk County Jail after the arrest.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karyna Valdes and Lindsey Schmidt.