Crime & Safety
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Man Facing Drug Charge In Fairfax County
A man who was arrested in Fairfax County last month on a felony drug charge was indicted for being in the U.S. illegally, court records say.
ALEXANDRIA, VA — An El Salvador native who was arrested in February by Fairfax County police on a felony drug charge was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in Alexandria for reentering the U.S. after being previously removed, according to court documents.
On Feb. 6, Josue Ezequiel Fuentes Granados was arrested in Fairfax County and charged with possession of Schedule I/II narcotics, which is a Class 5 felony, court records say.
Following a bond hearing on Feb. 19 in Fairfax County General District Court, Fuentes Granados was released on his own recognizance, according to court records. He was scheduled to return to court at 2 p.m. on April 22 for a preliminary hearing.
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In early February, a deportation officer with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Fairfax County performed records checks after learning of Fuentes Granados' arrest, according to an affidavit filed in support of a warrant request in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The deportation officer determined that Fuentes Granados was a native and citizen of El Salvador who was removed from the U.S. around Aug. 24, 2018 at or near Alexandria, Louisiana, according to the affidavit. In addition, there was no documentation authorizing Fuentes Granados' reentry into the U.S.
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Further investigation revealed that Fuentes Granados was convicted on a felony charge of forgery of public records in Fairfax County on July 23, 2018 and sentenced to two years incarceration, according to the affidavit.
Fuentes Granados was arrested by ICE on March 2 and charged with illegal reentry after removal subsequent to a conviction of an aggravated felony, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison, according to court records. He is scheduled to be arraigned at 11 a.m. on Wednesday in the federal courthouse in Alexandria.
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