During a week of enforcement operations from August 30 to September 5, 2025, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona charged 218 individuals with immigration-related crimes. Of these, 100 cases involved illegal re-entry into the United States, and 107 individuals were charged with illegal entry. Additionally, charges were brought against 11 people accused of smuggling others into or within Arizona.
Federal agencies such as 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), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) supported or referred these cases.
One case highlighted was United States v. Jose Uriel Meraz-Aguilar. On September 3, 2025, Meraz-Aguilar, a Mexican citizen aged 20, was charged by criminal complaint with Transportation of an Illegal Alien after being encountered by Border Patrol agents south of Dateland, Arizona. He had entered near Monument 179 with three others; two members of his group required medical treatment for dehydration and heat exhaustion after being separated in the desert. Agents determined that Meraz-Aguilar was paid to act as a foot guide for the Salazares Cartel and had left individuals behind on cartel instructions.
Another case involved Edwuin Lucino Hernandez-Cordero, also a Mexican citizen. On September 4, he was charged with Conspiracy to Transport an Illegal Alien following an earlier incident in July when he was pulled over while transporting five undocumented migrants. Investigators later connected him to stash houses in Glendale and Phoenix linked to a human smuggling operation.
These prosecutions are part of Operation Take Back America, which aims to use Department of Justice resources to combat illegal immigration and target cartels and transnational criminal organizations through coordinated efforts involving programs like Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
According to officials: “A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”
