Honduran Man Sentenced to Prison for Illegally Reentering the United States After Being Deported Six Times

Press Release

Illegally Worked Using Someone Else's Social Security Number After Illegally Reentering the United States

A man who had been deported, illegally returned to the United States, and then used someone else's social security number to obtain employment was sentenced Monday to ten months in federal prison.

Elder Moises Ramirez-Melgar, age 32, a citizen of Honduras illegally present in the United States and residing in Postville, Iowa, received the prison term after a June 17, 2024, guilty plea to one count of unlawful possession of an identification document and one count of illegal reentry into the United States after having been deported.

In a plea agreement, Ramirez-Melgar admitted he had previously been deported from the United States and illegally reentered the United States without the permission of the United States government. Ramirez-Melgar was previously deported in December 2009, September 2014, March 2016, March 2017, May 2020, and March 2023.

Ramirez-Melgar also admitted he possessed a fraudulent Social Security card bearing an alias name when he was arrested on January 30, 2024, for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence (OWI). Ramirez-Melgar admitted he knowingly used the fraudulent Social Security card to prove his authorization to work in the United States when he completed employment and tax forms at businesses in West Union, Iowa in December 2021, in Lime Springs, Iowa in August 2022, and in Cresco, Iowa in November 2023. Illegal aliens are not authorized to work in the United States. The number on the Social Security card was a real Social Security number assigned to a United States citizen. On the employment applications, Ramirez-Melgar falsely claimed to be a citizen of the United States.

On January 31, 2024, immigration officials learned Ramirez-Melgar had illegally returned to the United States and found Ramirez-Melgar at the Allamakee County Jail following his arrest for OWI. On March 15, 2024, Ramirez-Melgar was convicted of OWI in state court and sentenced to 35 days' imprisonment. Ramirez-Melgar was previously convicted in January 2023 in the Northern District of Iowa of illegally reentering the United States, served four months' imprisonment and was deported. Ramirez-Melgar was also convicted in the District of Arizona in February 2017 and March 2020 of illegal entry into the United States.

Ramirez-Melgar was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Ramirez-Melgar was sentenced to ten months' imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

Ramirez-Melgar is being held in the United States Marshal's custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.

The case file number is 24-CR-1004.

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Updated August 27, 2024