CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A Dominican Republic national who returned to the territory nine months after he was deported from the United States — gets to stay another 1.5 years here — in prison
United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced today that Jose Alfredo Rondon Castro, 40, of the Dominican Republic, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for illegal reentry in District Court before U.S. District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez.
Judge Gomez also sentenced Castro to three years of supervised release. Judge Gomez further ordered Castro to pay a special assessment of $100.00.
Castro pled guilty to illegal reentry on November 13, 2018.
According, to the plea agreement filed with the court, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) apprehended a vessel in the area of North Haulover Bay, St. John after agents observed that the vessel was operating with no lights.
After the vessel was stopped, AMO agents observed five male individuals on board.
Castro was one of the four male individuals determined not to be U.S. citizens and that he was previously deported in February 2018.
Castro did not have permission from the Department of Homeland Security to re-enter.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Unit (AMO).
It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sigrid Tejo-Sprotte.