St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands – U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced that a citizen of Haiti was arrested on February 14, 2022, at the Cyril E. King Airport on a criminal charge stemming from his illegal reentry into the United States.
According to court documents, Dunord Joseph, 36, presented himself to Customs and Border Protection officials for inspection at the Cyril E. King Airport in hopes of boarding a flight to Orlando, Florida. Records checks revealed that Dunord Joseph had previously been removed from Miami, Florida, on December 18, 2018, and there is no record of him having obtained the express consent of the Secretary of Homeland Security to reapply for admission prior to being found back in the United States on February 14, 2022.
Dunord Joseph is charged with a violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a)(1) for returning to and remaining in the United States after having been removed, denied admission, excluded or deported and doing so without the express consent of the Secretary of Homeland Security to reapply for admission. If convicted, he faces a sentence of up to 2 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Homeland Security Investigations is investigating the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.