SIOUX CITY, IOWA — A Guatemalan man illegally living in Northern Iowa after twice being removed from the United States has been sentenced to federal prison, authorities announced.
Rigoberto Corado-Hernandes, 63, a citizen of Guatemala who had been residing illegally in Rock Valley, was sentenced Thursday, July 23, 2026, to eight months in federal prison.
Corado-Hernandes pleaded guilty May 20 to one count of illegal reentry into the United States.
Federal prosecutors said Corado-Hernandes admitted returning to the country without permission after immigration authorities had previously removed him to Guatemala on two separate occasions.
His latest federal case followed a violent encounter involving a knife.
Corado-Hernandes (pictured at top) was convicted in Sioux County in 2024 of first-offense domestic abuse assault with a dangerous weapon. According to federal authorities, he attempted to stab his nephew with a knife during that incident.
He was later found in the Sioux County Jail on January 13, 2026, where he was being held for violating probation imposed in the 2024 criminal case.
Immigration officials determined while Corado-Hernandes was in custody that he was a Guatemalan citizen, had no lawful status permitting him to remain in the United States and had previously been deported.
United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand handed down the sentence in Sioux City. In addition to eight months behind bars, Corado-Hernandes was ordered to serve one year of supervised release following his prison term.
There is no parole in the federal prison system.
Corado-Hernandes remains in the custody of the United States Marshals Service while awaiting transportation to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood. The Sioux County Sheriff’s Office and United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated.
Federal officials said the prosecution was part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative targeting illegal immigration, cartels, transnational criminal organizations and perpetrators of violent crime.