KANSAS CITY, MO. — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Missouri, Western), published as received.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Mexican national, illegally living in the Kansas City, Mo. area, has been sentenced to federal prison for an immigration violation.
A jury convicted Jaime Cruz-Hernandez, 37, of illegally reentering the United States after being deported. On September 1, 2026, U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark sentenced him to 24 months in federal prison.
According to information presented in court, Cruz-Hernandez was stopped and arrested on Jan. 6, 2026, by the Grandview, Missouri Police Department for driving while intoxicated. Immigration authorities then determined that Cruz-Hernandez is a citizen of Mexico and in the United States illegally after having been previously deported to Mexico in 2019. At that time, Cruz-Hernandez had already been arrested on four prior occasions for driving under the influence.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rudolph R. Rhodes IV, and Special Assistant United States Attorney Viet Le. It was investigated by Grandview, Missouri Police Department and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations, and Homeland Security Investigations.
Operation Take Back America
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, 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.
