⏱ 2 min read
Carlos Lopez-Mejia, a 46-year-old Honduran alien, was convicted of illegally reentering the United States after a dramatic flight from a trooper in Corpus Christi, Texas, on September 6, 2025. Lopez-Mejia, who resided in Corpus Christi, was a passenger in a vehicle stopped by law enforcement due to excessively tinted windows and a non-compliant stop lamp. When authorities asked for his identification, Lopez-Mejia refused and fled on foot to a nearby apartment, but was quickly taken into custody.
The investigation revealed that Lopez-Mejia had been removed from the United States in 2001 and 2019. At trial, the jury heard from several members of law enforcement who provided details about the arrest, his prior removals from the United States, fingerprint analysis confirming his identity, and that Lopez-Mejia had never sought status to legally enter or remain in the United States.
The defense attempted to convince the jury that the records of the prior removals were unreliable, but the jury found Lopez-Mejia guilty as charged. U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos presided over the trial and set sentencing for October 7, where Lopez-Mejia faces up to two years in federal prison.
Lopez-Mejia has been and will remain in custody pending the sentencing hearing. The case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations with the assistance of the Texas Department of Public Safety, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Izaak Bruce and Zachary Bird.
📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Organized Crime
- Defendant: Texas
- Location: TX
- Source: DOJ Press Release
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