ERO Houston removes previously deported Honduran fugitive wanted for murder
HOUSTON - A previously departed Honduran national has been removed by officials with Enforcement and Removal Operation (ERO) Houston.
According to a release, 35-year-old Juan Manuel Mena Dolmo was removed from the U.S. on March 22 as he is wanted for murder in Honduras.
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A charter flight coordinated U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Air Operations Unit flew Mena from Alexandria, Louisiana, to the Ramon Villeda Morales International Airport in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. Upon arrival, he was transferred into the custody of Honduran law enforcement authorities.
Officials said Mena first illegally entered the United States on an unknown date and at an unknown location. On Dec. 27, 2013, he was encountered by ICE officers at the Summit County Jail in Akron, Ohio, following his arrest by the Cleveland Police Department for forgery, obstruction, and driving a vehicle without an operator’s license. Mena was convicted of all three charges on March 26, 2014, in the Summit County Common Pleas Court and sentenced to a six-month suspended sentence. That same day, the Summit County Jail transferred Mena into ICE custody, and he was placed into immigration proceedings. On June 2, 2014, an immigration judge with the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review ordered Mena removed from the United States. ICE officers removed Mena from the U.S. on July 1, 2014.
Mena illegally reentered the United States on an unknown date and at an unknown location, officials said. On April 22, 2022, he was arrested by the Harris County Constable’s Office in Texas following a routine traffic stop after it was discovered that he was wanted in Honduras for murder. The Harris County Constable’s Office transferred Mena into ERO Houston custody that same day. On Dec. 20, 2022, an immigration judge ordered Mena removed from the United States. ERO Houston removed Mena from the U.S. on March 22, 2023.
"ERO Houston is committed to working with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to identify and remove foreign fugitives hiding out in the United States," said ERO Houston acting Field Office Director Gabriel Martinez. "By removing foreign fugitives from our communities and repatriating them to their country of origin, we eliminate a threat to public safety and ensure that they face justice for their alleged crimes."