El Paso Standard

Two individuals from Mexico have been sentenced to a total of more than four years in federal prison for illegally reentering the United States. This follows a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) investigation.

Julio Cesar Paniagua received a 37-month federal prison sentence for illegally reentering the country after being previously removed. Herman Vazquez-Padilla was sentenced to 15 months for reentering after committing an aggravated felony.

"Paniagua pled guilty on Jan. 13, 2025. Vazquez-Padilla was found guilty on Dec. 23, 2024."

Court documents indicate that in 2011, Paniagua was convicted of a narcotics distribution conspiracy. Following incarceration, he was removed from the United States on December 3, 2015. In 2018, he attempted to reenter the U.S. illegally, was charged, convicted, incarcerated, and removed again. He was later found in Dade City, Florida, on November 18, 2024.

Vazquez-Padilla, also from Mexico, reentered the U.S. without permission after removal. He was previously convicted of conspiring to transport 100 or more illegal aliens on September 19, 2012. He was ordered removed on June 7, 2021, and was removed on November 10, 2021. Eventually, he was found in Hillsborough County, Florida, on August 28, 2024, by ICE officers.

Both cases were investigated by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations. "These cases were prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Wheeler, III, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Karyna Valdes respectively."