PENSACOLA — A 42-year-old Guatemalan illegal alien who has been deported from the United States four times was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to illegal reentry by a removed alien, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida announced.
Jose Francisco Santizo-Perez, also known as Jose Mynor Castillo Lazaro, had twice been convicted of illegal reentry — first in 2018 in the Northern District of Florida and again in 2020 in the Western District of Texas. After his most recent deportation in 2021, he illegally returned and was found in Okaloosa County in January 2026.
“This criminal illegal alien has clearly not gotten the message that violating our nation’s immigration laws will not be tolerated, so now he will spend more than a year in federal prison before being deported once again,” said U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin. “We are a nation of laws, and my office will continue to aggressively prosecute anyone who dares to violate those laws in the Northern District of Florida.”
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Miami acting Field Office Director Kelei Walker called Santizo-Perez “a repeat offender who has been deported four times and twice convicted for illegal reentry and continues to demonstrate his contempt for the laws of the United States.”
“This conviction highlights the persistent issues associated with criminal illegal aliens who continually break immigration laws,” Walker said. “The 16-month federal prison sentence demonstrates ICE’s dedication to upholding the law and safeguarding our communities from individuals who ignore the legal process.”
The case was investigated by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Alicia H. Forbes. It falls under Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative targeting illegal immigration and transnational criminal organizations.
Santizo-Perez faces deportation for a fifth time upon completion of his federal sentence.