Hector Castillo-Molina, Unlawful Re-entry, Texas 2024

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 27-year-old Mexican national with a lengthy criminal history has been sentenced to 48 months in federal prison for unlawfully re-entering the United States without permission for a second time, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

Hector Castillo-Molina pleaded guilty on September 13, 2024. U.S. District Judge David S. Morales has now ordered Castillo-Molina to serve four years in federal prison. Not a U.S. citizen, he is expected to face removal proceedings following his imprisonment.

In handing down the sentence, the court called Castillo-Molina’s extensive record “concerning,” noting that if he kept coming back, he would just be spending all his time in jail. Castillo-Molina has a lengthy criminal history to include five felonies including burglary, drug possession, felon in possession of a firearm, and illegal reentry into the United States.

Castillo-Molina has been previously removed from the United States on multiple occasions. He was last removed in August 2022. However, authorities discovered him again on April 27, 2024, at the Falfurrias Border Patrol (BP) checkpoint. He was one of 59 individuals being transported in a tractor-trailer.

The investigation was conducted by the Border Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Griffith prosecuted the case. This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the U.S. government to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

Castillo-Molina will remain in custody pending transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

Related Federal Cases