A Mexican man with a history of repeated immigration violations is facing federal charges after he was apprehended attempting to enter the United States illegally at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, authorities announced this week.
U.S. Attorney’s officials identified the defendant as Gelacio Ortiz Dominguez. Ortiz Dominguez was driving north through the port’s main vehicle lanes on Wednesday, February 11, when he was intercepted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers. He now faces a formal charge of “attempted entry after deportation.”
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Court records indicate that this is not Ortiz Dominguez’s first encounter with U.S. immigration authorities. He has been deported from the United States on at least three separate occasions, including once in 2022 and twice prior to that date.
The arrest is one of dozens of border-related cases recently prosecuted in the Southern District of California. Federal prosecutors report at least 144 such cases have been referred in recent weeks alone.
In a separate incident on February 8, U.S. citizen Raúl Rodríguez was arrested at the San Ysidro port of entry. CBP officers discovered more than 50 packages hidden inside both bumpers of his vehicle, containing a total of 62 kilograms of methamphetamine. Rodríguez faces drug importation charges.
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Furthermore, two other Mexican nationals, Juan Manuel Estrada Cortez and Manuel Monterrosa Mendoza, have been charged with immigrant trafficking. All cases were investigated and referred by federal law enforcement agencies, including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).Fentanyl Smuggling Attempt at San Ysidro Leads to Arrest
