GREAT FALLS – A Mexico citizen pleaded guilty today to illegal re-entry after she was arrested in Glacier County with others during an investigation into possible alien smuggling from Canada, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.

Ma Mercedes Rivera-Gutierrez, 39, pleaded guilty to illegal re-entry into the United States after having been previously deported. Rivera-Gutierrez faces a maximum two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.

U.S. District Judge Brian Morris presided and set sentencing for Feb. 6. Rivera-Gutierrez was detained pending further proceedings.

The prosecution said in court records that Rivera-Gutierrez was found in Glacier County on Nov. 17, 2019, shortly after she entered the United States. Rivera-Gutierrez had been removed from the United States in 2001, 2007 and 2012 and had not applied for permission to re-enter. Rivera-Gutierrez admitted she re-entered the United States on foot, north of Cut Bank, in Glacier County.

On Nov. 17, 2019, a Border Patrol agent observed a black Chevrolet Suburban traveling south on Highway 213 at about 10:45 p.m. and, based on intelligence and surveillance, had reason to believe the vehicle was being used to traffic undocumented aliens. When the agent activated his emergency lights and performed a traffic stop on the Suburban, multiple occupants absconded on foot into an agricultural field. Agents searched the field and arrested multiple persons, including Rivera-Gutierrez. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paulette Stewart is prosecuting the case, which was investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

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GREAT FALLS – Four Mexican citizens who were arrested in Glacier County on suspicion of smuggling aliens into the United States or illegal reentry pleaded not guilty today to immigration-related crimes, U.S. Kurt Alme said.

Alberto Guillen-Gordillo, 22, Omero Banderas-Rodriguez, 39, and Samuel Velasco-Tovar, 28, all citizens of Mexico, pleaded not guilty to an indictment charging them with conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and transportation of illegal aliens. If convicted of the most serious crime, the defendants face a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.

The indictment alleges the defendants conspired from 2018 to Nov. 17, 2019 to transport at least six, but not more than 25, illegal aliens into the United States.

Ma Mercedes Rivera-Gutierrez, 39, of Mexico, pleaded not guilty to a separate indictment charging her with illegal reentry. If convicted of the most serious crime, Rivera-Gutierrez faces a maximum two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. The indictment alleges that Rivera-Gutierrez illegally reentered the United States after having been deported.

All of the defendants were arrested on Nov. 17 in Glacier County by Border Patrol agents who were investigating suspected alien smuggling.

U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston presided. All of the defendants remain detained pending further proceedings.

The indictments are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The case was investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Pacer case reference. 19-84 and 19-85.

If any of the above cases are of interest to you, we encourage you to monitor the progress of the case regularly through the U.S. District Court calendar and the PACER system.

To establish a PACER account, which will allow you to review documents filed in the case, please go to, http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the district court’s calendar, please go to https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.

  

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GREAT FALLS—Five Mexican citizens who were arrested on November 17 in Glacier County by law enforcement investigating suspected alien smuggling appeared in court today on immigration-related charges, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.

The five defendants were among a total of 19 suspected aliens who were picked up and transported to the Sweetgrass Border Patrol Station for processing.

Four of the defendants, Alberto Guillen-Gordillo, 22, Omero Banderas-Rodriguez, 39, Josue Bermudez-Lopez, 26, and Samuel Velasco-Tovar, 28, had an initial appearance on a criminal complaint before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston. The complaint charges the four with illegal transport of aliens and with conspiracy to transport aliens. If convicted of the most serious crime, the defendants face a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.

A fifth defendant, Ma Mercedes Rivera-Gutierrez, 39, had an initial appearance on a criminal complaint charging her with illegal reentry. If convicted of the most serious crime, Rivera-Gutierrez faces a maximum two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.

All defendants were detained pending further proceedings.

Court documents filed in the case said that in October, law enforcement received information about suspicious room rental activity at a Cut Bank hotel by several Mexican nationals over approximately the prior six months. The investigation led Border Patrol agents to suspect a group of aliens was coming into the country illegally from Canada. On November 17, agents made near-simultaneous traffic stops of two SUVs at about 11:15 p.m. In the first vehicle, driven by Omero Banderas-Rodriguez, were nine passengers. During the stop of the second vehicle, all occupants ran into a nearby field. Agents found eight individuals in the field within a few minutes. One of the persons arrested in the field was Josue Bermudez Lopez. Another defendant, Alberto Guillen-Gordillo, was arrested at the hotel room where the subjects had been staying.

Border Patrol agents arrested Rivera-Gutierrez during a search of the field for occupants who ran from the vehicle.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeff Starnes, Paulette Stewart and Ethan Plaut are prosecuting the case, which was investigated by the U.S. Border Patrol and the Glacier County Sheriff’s Office.

The complaints are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Pacer case reference. MJ-19-82 and MJ-19-83.

If any of the above cases are of interest to your media organization and the community it serves, we encourage you to monitor the progress of the case regularly through the U.S. District Court calendar and the PACER system.

To establish a PACER account, which will allow you to review documents filed in the case, please go to, http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the district court’s calendar, please go to https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.