Mexican national arrested by ICE in CT charged with illegally reentering U.S. after deportation

A Mexican national who was previously deported following a drug conviction was recently arrested in Meriden and charged with illegally reentering the United States.

Juan Jose Carrasco Cardenas, 39, a citizen of Mexico, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations on Aug. 27 in Meriden, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He appeared Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas O. Farrish in Hartford on a federal criminal complain charging him with unlawful reentry and was ordered detained.

Court records show that, in January 2002, Carrasco was stopped by U.S. Border Patrol and was issued a voluntary return to Mexico. In May 2009, U.S. Border Patrol caught Carrasco in Arizona illegally entering the U.S. He was charged with improper entry of an alien, was sentenced to five days in prison and was later issued a voluntary return to Mexico.

In January 2018, Carrasco was arrested again, this time in Saline County, Kansas, and charged with various offenses related to marijuana trafficking, according to court records. He was convicted of state charges for marijuana distribution and sentenced to 30 months in prison. By October 2019, he was removed to Mexico, court records show.

If convicted, Carrasco faces a maximum term of 10 years in federal prison.

https://www.courant.com/2025/09/04/mexican-national-arrested-by-ice-in-ct-charged-with-illegally-reentering-u-s-after-deportation/