CHICAGO - An illegal alien with an extensive criminal record has been sentenced to more than a year in federal prison for unlawfully re-entering the United States after previously being deported on multiple occasions.

MANUEL ALBERTO CORTES CUAN, a native of Mexico, was unlawfully present in the United States on June 17, 2025, when he was arrested in Lyons, Ill. Police received a report that a vehicle identified in an ongoing theft investigation was located in a residential area of Lyons. When police approached the vehicle and attempted to detain Cortes Cuan, he vigorously resisted arrest, causing injuries to himself and two police officers.

Cortes Cuan was previously deported from the United States on five occasions. Each deportation occurred after Cortes Cuan sustained criminal convictions while unlawfully present here. The prior offenses of convictions included theft, escape, trespassing, aggravated assault, and aggravated DUI.

Cortes Cuan, 38, pleaded guilty in April 2026 to one count of unlawful re-entry after removal. On June 3, 2026, U.S. District Judge LaShonda A. Hunt sentenced Cortes Cuan to 14 months in federal prison. The conviction subjects Cortes Cuan to removal from the United States.

The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. Valuable assistance was provided by Homeland Security Investigations and the Lyons, Ill. Police Department. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Kelly.