Marlon Amaya-Lopez, Illegal Reentry, Connecticut 2023

Marlon Amaya-Lopez, a 33-year-old Honduran national residing in Bridgeport, Connecticut, has been arrested and charged with illegally reentering the United States after being deported.

According to the indictment, Amaya-Lopez was previously deported and removed from the U.S. to Honduras following a felony conviction in April 2007 in Connecticut Superior Court for attempted robbery in the second degree. He reentered the U.S. and returned to Connecticut without obtaining the consent of the Attorney General of the United States or his successor, the Secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, to reapply for admission into the U.S.

Amaya-Lopez was arrested yesterday and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Dave Vatti in Bridgeport, where he entered a plea of not guilty to the charge. He was ordered detained pending trial.

The indictment was returned on May 11, 2021, and unsealed yesterday after Amaya-Lopez was located and arrested. If convicted of the charge of illegal reentry, Amaya-Lopez faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. The penalties in this matter are enhanced based on his prior conviction for a felony.

U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery stressed that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial at which it is the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Neeraj N. Patel and Stephanie T. Levick.

Defendant: Marlon Amaya-Lopez

Crime: One count of illegally reentering the U.S. after being deported

Location: Bridgeport, Connecticut

Date: May 2023 (arrest), May 11, 2021 (indictment)

Sentence: Pending trial

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