Jose Raul Maita, Unlawful Reentry, Connecticut 2025

Jose Raul Maita, a 55-year-old Ecuadorian national, is facing serious charges after being accused of unlawful reentry into the United States. According to court documents, Maita has a history of convictions for sex abuse, failure to register as a sex offender, and driving while intoxicated, among other offenses.

In June 1996, Maita was granted legal permanent resident status in the US after his marriage to a US citizen. However, his past soon caught up with him as he was convicted in Westchester County Court in New York of sexual abuse in the first degree in February 1998. The victim was just nine years old at the time. Maita was sentenced to five years of probation and required to register as a sex offender.

Maita’s troubles didn’t end there. In November 2000, he was convicted of failure to register as a sex offender, and in August 2001, he was convicted of driving while intoxicated and violating his probation. His probation was revoked, and he was sentenced to one year of incarceration. Maita was deported to Ecuador in October 2003.

However, Maita allegedly illegally reentered the US and was convicted in Westchester County Court of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol in November 2006. In April 2007, he was convicted of failure to register as a sex offender again. In April 2008, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested Maita, and in October 2008, he was convicted of unlawful reentry in the Southern District of New York. Maita was once again deported to Ecuador in August 2009.

Maita’s latest run-in with the law occurred on September 20, 2025, when he was arrested by the Connecticut State Police in Southbury on charges of illegal operation of a motor vehicle without a license and operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and drugs. He was released on bond but was subsequently located and arrested on November 4, 2025, in Waterbury.

Maita appeared before US Magistrate Judge Robert M. Spector in New Haven and was ordered detained. If convicted of unlawful reentry, Maita faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years. U.S. Attorney David X. Sullivan emphasized that a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The case is being investigated by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel as part of Operation Take Back America.

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