This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Connecticut), published as received.
David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that YUNIOR BENAVIDES, 50, a citizen of the Dominican Republic, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Vernon D. Oliver in Hartford to 21 months of imprisonment for illegally reentering the U.S. as a removed alien.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2009, Benavides and others were charged with federal offenses related to their participation in a Hartford area narcotics distribution conspiracy. He pleaded guilty, was sentenced to 60 months of imprisonment and, in November 2013, was deported to the Dominican Republic. Benavides subsequently illegally reentered the U.S.
On March 6, 2026, HSI agents stopped a car in West Hartford in connection with a drug trafficking investigation. Benavides, the driver of the car, was identified as being unlawfully present in the U.S. and was taken into custody. He was also in possession of a false identification document.
Benavides has been detained since his arrest. On June 30, 2026, he pleaded guilty to unlawful reentry.
This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Neeraj N. Patel and Michael S. Deel.
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.
