SIOUX CITY – A man who illegally returned to the United States after being deported was sentenced today to almost three months in federal prison.
Fernando Hernandez-Correa, age 28, a citizen of Mexico illegally present in the United States and residing in Sioux City, Iowa, received the prison term after a November 21, 2019, guilty plea to one count of illegal reentry into the United States.
At the guilty plea, Hernandez-Correa admitted he had previously been deported from the United States and illegally reentered the United States without the permission of the United States government. Hernandez-Correa voluntarily returned to Mexico in January 2017 following an arrest in Texas for driving while intoxicated. Hernandez-Correa was deported in July 2017 after illegally entering the United States in June 2017.
On October 30, 2019, Hernandez-Correa and other illegal aliens came to the attention of immigration agents following a traffic stop on Interstate 80 near Wilton, Iowa, for a commercial vehicle violation.
Hernandez-Correa was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Hernandez-Correa was sentenced to 82 days’ imprisonment. He must also serve a one-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Hernandez-Correa is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be turned over to immigration officials.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations.
