CEDAR RAPIDS – An illegal alien from Guatemala was busted by authorities working in Iowa, then sent to prison.
Juan Raymundo-Perez, age 34, a citizen of Guatemala illegally present in the United States and residing in Dubuque, Iowa, received the prison term after a guilty plea on February 28, 2022, to one count of illegal reentry into the United States after having been deported.
In a plea agreement, Raymundo-Perez admitted he had previously been deported from the United States and illegally reentered the United States without the permission of the United States government. In June 2017, Raymundo-Perez was convicted in the Northern District of Iowa of using a fraudulent permanent resident card and a fraudulent Social Security card with numbers assigned to other people to illegally obtain employment in Dubuque. Illegal aliens are not authorized to work in the United States. Raymundo-Perez was deported to Guatemala by immigration officials in July 2017. He claimed to have illegally re-entered the United States through Texas in April 2021. On November 8, 2021, immigration officials learned Raymundo-Perez had illegally returned to the United States and found Raymundo-Perez at the Dubuque County Jail following his arrest on state charges. Further investigation by immigration officials showed that Raymundo-Perez again used a fraudulent permanent resident card and a fraudulent Social Security card with numbers assigned to other people to illegally obtain employment in Dubuque using an alias in April 2021.
Raymundo-Perez was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Raymundo-Perez was sentenced to imprisonment of 12 months and one day. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Raymundo-Perez is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations.