A Salvadoran national, Edwin Bonilla Mendoza, was sentenced on Feb. 3 to 15 months in prison for illegally reentering the United States after removal and resisting a federal officer.
The case highlights the consequences faced by individuals who return to the country after being removed and engage in further criminal activity. The sentencing took place in Urbana, Illinois.
According to evidence presented at the hearing, Bonilla Mendoza had been removed from the United States in 2018 but returned illegally. After his return, he strangled a family member and was convicted of Aggravated Domestic Battery in Kankakee County Circuit Court in 2023. In June 2025, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents located him in Kankakee County wearing marked police uniforms. He attempted to flee arrest before being apprehended.
U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce found that Bonilla Mendoza created a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury while fleeing from ICE agents by attempting to drive away and accelerating his vehicle into a police car twice before escaping into a residential area.
Bonilla Mendoza pleaded guilty to both offenses. It is expected that he will be removed from the United States after serving his sentence.
The statutory penalties for being a removed alien found in the United States include up to two years of imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, and up to one year of supervised release. Resisting a federal officer carries penalties of up to one year of imprisonment, up to a $100,000 fine, and up to one year of supervised release.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney William J. Lynch represented the government.
