| MARYLAND U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE ANNOUNCES SEVERAL RECENT PROSECUTIONS IN CONNECTION WITH DOJ TAKE BACK AMERICA INITIATIVE Baltimore, Maryland – Today, U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes announced that the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland recently secured several criminal complaints, indictments, and sentencings in connection with the Department of Justice's Operation Take Back America. A nationwide initiative, Operation Take Back America marshals the full resources of the DOJ to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Below are recent examples of prosecutions the office secured in connection with this initiative. On December 2, 2025, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland filed a criminal complaint, against Anderson Martinez-Montenegro, 28, and Elmer Ortiz-Berduo, 37, both citizens of Guatemala and unlawfully present in the United States. They are charged with resisting arrest and assaulting federal officers. On November 24, 2025, U.S. District Judge Adam B. Abelson sentenced Jairo Eliu Aguilar-Lopez, 54, of El Salvador, to 15 months in federal prison, followed by one year of supervised release, for illegally reentering the United States after he was deported on two separate occasions. On November 14, 2025, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland filed a criminal complaint against Cristian Rivas-Bonilla, 26, of El Salvador, charging him with resisting, opposing, impeding, and interfering with federal law enforcement officers. Rivas-Bonilla was subject to removal from the United States in connection with a final order of removal to El Salvador from an immigration judge. On October 30, 2025, U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman sentenced Sarah Maud Jess, 62, a Jamaican national living in Capitol Heights, Maryland, to five years in federal prison for two counts, distributing more than 40 grams of fentanyl and re-entry of an alien removed after conviction for an aggravated felony. On October 16, 2025, a federal grand jury indicted Luis Melendez Serrano, 19; Kevin Melendez Serrano, 23; Alex Pena Martinez, 19; and William Rivera Nolasco, 19, charging them with conspiring to traffic firearms. According to the indictment, Luis Melendez Serrano and Martinez are illegal aliens who unlawfully possessed a firearm. Additionally, Luis Melendez Serrano, Martinez, and Nolasco are charged with possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine. On October 2, 2025, U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Maddox sentenced Francisco Reymundo-Reymundo, 30, a citizen of Guatemala, to eight months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally reentering the United States. This marks Reymundo-Reymundo's third illegal reentry conviction. According to Court filings, the U.S. previously deported Reymundo-Reymundo four other times. U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the Maryland Office's Assistant U.S. Attorneys and support staff for their work in these investigations. For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, visit justice.gov/usao-md and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach. # # # |
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