United States Attorney John P. Heekin announced the conviction of six previously deported individuals for illegal reentry into the United States. These individuals, all of whom had been removed from the country due to unlawful presence, returned without obtaining necessary permission.
Juan Gomez Perez, a Mexican national, was removed in September 2022 and found in Tallahassee on May 29, 2025. Baltazar R. Mixteco-Temaxtle, also from Mexico, faced removal in June 2013 and December 2017 before being encountered in Pensacola on February 22, 2025. Fredy Bravo Galvez was removed twice in March of different years and was found again in Tallahassee on June 14, 2025.
Jose Larios-Cortez from Honduras was removed in November 2014 and encountered in Santa Rosa County on April 27, 2025. Juan Carlos Hernandez Vallejos from Nicaragua had multiple removals between 2006 and 2015 before being found again in Tallahassee. Lastly, Juan Rodolfo Martinez-Hernandez from Mexico was removed twice before being encountered in Pace on April 11, 2025.
U.S. Attorney Heekin stated: “You will see a pattern in many of these cases: aliens who continue to return this country believing they will not face criminal consequences for violating our immigration laws.” He emphasized that enforcement of immigration laws is a priority under President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi’s initiative “Take Back America.”
The investigations were conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations with state and local partners’ assistance. Assistant United States Attorneys Justin M. Keen, Jeffrey Tharp, Jennifer H. Callahan, and Eric Mountin prosecuted these cases.
These convictions are part of Operation Take Back America—a nationwide initiative aimed at addressing illegal immigration issues by utilizing resources from the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida serves as one of the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.
