ALEXANDRIA, VA — A federal grand jury indicted a Salvadoran man Thursday on a charge of illegally reentering the United States after deportation following an aggravated felony conviction, according to court records.
Olvin Omar Bonilla-Vasquez was found in Alexandria on May 21 without having received permission to reapply for admission to the United States, prosecutors said in the one-count indictment returned Aug. 27 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Bonilla-Vasquez, whose age was not included in the court records, is also known by several aliases, including "Culebra," Oblin Omar Bonilla Bonilla, Oscar Melendez, Jose Armando Pacheco, Jose Estrada and Jose Alfred Bonilla.
Homeland Security Investigations received information March 27 indicating that Bonilla-Vasquez was likely living in Alexandria, according to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint.
An HSI agent reviewing immigration records determined that Bonilla-Vasquez was a citizen of El Salvador who had been removed from the United States multiple times. The removals included one on Dec. 21, 2005, near Mesa, Arizona, and another on Nov. 17, 2011, near Houston, the affidavit said.
Investigators found a public social media profile belonging to a person who had identified Bonilla-Vasquez as her common-law husband, according to the affidavit. Photos posted to the account on March 7 appeared to show Bonilla-Vasquez in Arlington and outside an Alexandria residence associated with the couple, investigators said.
One photo appeared to have been taken near South Hayes and 15th streets in Arlington. Another showed a man with an "OMAR B" tattoo on his right forearm, matching a tattoo shown in earlier booking photos, according to the affidavit.
On May 21, HSI and Border Patrol agents conducted surveillance outside the Alexandria residence. Agents saw a man believed to be Bonilla-Vasquez enter a white Chevrolet van and observed a cross-shaped tattoo with a band beneath it on his left forearm, the affidavit said. Investigators said the tattoo also matched earlier booking photos.
Federal immigration records contained no evidence that Bonilla-Vasquez had received legal status or permission from the attorney general or Homeland Security secretary to return after his removal, according to the affidavit.
Bonilla-Vasquez was convicted April 3, 2002, of willfully failing to appear in D.C. Superior Court after being released from custody while awaiting a felony trial, the affidavit said. The federal agent characterized that conviction as an aggravated felony under immigration law.
On Nov. 12, 2010, Bonilla-Vasquez was convicted in U.S. District Court in Maryland of illegal reentry after an aggravated felony conviction, according to the affidavit. He was removed from the country again the following year.
Federal authorities arrested Bonilla-Vasquez on Aug. 4. During an Aug. 6 hearing, he waived his right to a preliminary hearing, and a magistrate judge found probable cause to send the case to a grand jury.
At an Aug. 10 detention hearing, prosecutors asked that Bonilla-Vasquez remain in custody while his attorney sought his release under court-imposed conditions. A magistrate judge denied the defense request and ordered him held without bond pending trial.
Bonilla-Vasquez is scheduled to be arraigned at 9 a.m. Tuesday, before U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria. He is represented by the Federal Public Defender's Office.
An indictment is an accusation and does not establish guilt. Bonilla-Vasquez is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Also See ...
Sign up for free local newsletters and alerts for the
Old Town Alexandria Patch
Patch.com is the nationwide leader in hyperlocal news.
Visit Patch.com to find your town today.