Santiago Ordonez Felipe, Illegal Re-entry, New York 2023

Santiago Ordonez Felipe, 47, a citizen of Guatemala, is back behind bars — albeit briefly — after being caught back on American soil following his 2015 deportation. The federal courts in Albany, New York, handed down a sentence of time served: exactly 36 days in jail, closing the book on his latest brush with U.S. immigration law.

U.S. Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Thomas E. Feeley, Director of ICE’s Buffalo Field Office, Enforcement and Removal Operations, confirmed the sentencing today. Ordonez Felipe’s return to the United States wasn’t just unauthorized — it was a direct violation of federal law, triggering swift federal prosecution.

Court records show Ordonez Felipe admitted during his guilty plea that he was previously removed from the U.S. on August 18, 2015, after Border Patrol caught him illegally crossing into Arizona from Mexico. That prior removal set the stage for his criminal charge when he resurfaced five years later — on July 7, 2020 — in Whitehall, New York, population barely over 2,000 and now the site of his federal reckoning.

His capture wasn’t by chance. An ICE officer conducted a routine check and pulled Ordonez Felipe’s fingerprints, which instantly flagged his 2015 removal. No lengthy investigation needed. The match was undeniable, the violation clear: a deported alien found again within U.S. borders without permission.

The case was investigated by ICE-ERO, the agency tasked with tracking down and removing criminal and repeat immigration violators. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward P. Grogan prosecuted, pushing for accountability under 8 U.S.C. § 1326, the statute governing illegal re-entry after deportation.

While the sentence of 36 days may seem light, federal prosecutors often weigh prior criminal history, cooperation, and detention time already served. In Ordonez Felipe’s case, time served was deemed sufficient. But the message is sharp: cross illegally, get deported, then come back? That’s a federal crime — and the feds are watching.

Related Federal Cases