During the week of September 20 to September 26, 2025, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona charged 181 individuals with immigration-related crimes. The office filed 82 cases involving illegal re-entry and charged 80 people for illegally entering the United States. Additionally, 18 cases were filed against 19 individuals accused of smuggling illegal aliens into or within Arizona.
These prosecutions were supported by several federal agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
One case involved Ignacio Villalobos-Lopez, a Mexican citizen previously removed from the United States. On September 22, law enforcement found him transporting four illegal aliens and learned he had done so before for $500 per person. He was charged with Illegal Entry and Transportation of an Illegal Alien.
Another case concerned Marco Villareal-Aguilar, also a Mexican citizen. On September 25, he was charged with Bringing in an Illegal Alien for Profit after being identified as a foot guide who led nine other Mexican citizens across the border on the Tohono O’odham Nation using coordination via cellphone and radio.
Nathan Vega was charged on September 25 with Transportation of an Illegal Alien after leading Border Patrol agents on a car chase near the international border on the Tohono O’odham Nation. Five passengers in his vehicle were apprehended and determined to be Mexican citizens illegally present in the United States.
According to officials, these actions are part of Operation Take Back America. The initiative is described as “a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.” It integrates efforts from Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Authorities noted that all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
