Timoteo Upia-Frias, a 73-year-old Dominican Republican national, was arrested Friday on St. Thomas and charged with illegally reentering the United States, U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced Tuesday.
According to court documents, while investigating undocumented immigrants in the U.S. Virgin Islands U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations agents discovered Upia-Frias living in a neighborhood on St. Thomas.
Criminal and immigration records confirmed that on Sept. 6, 2016, Timoteo Upia-Frias was removed from the United States by ICE agents and returned to his native country, the Dominican Republic, following his conviction in the District Court of the United States in 2008 for possessing with intent to distribute heroin.
Upia-Frias is charged with illegal reentry pursuant to 8 U.S.C § 1326. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, Shappert said in Tuesday’s news release.
HSI and ICE are investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Payne is prosecuting.
