An Ecuadorian illegal immigrant pleaded guilty in Portland on Wednesday to federal charges of illegally re-entering the U.S. following a prior deportation just last year.
In early August, Tamara Iveth Shiguano-Vargas, 29, was a passenger in a car traveling on I-95 when a Maine State Police trooper stopped the vehicle for an alleged speeding violation.
According to court records, the trooper requested assistance from Border Patrol to help identify the driver.
Shiguano-Vargas reportedly left the car and attempted to flee on foot while the trooper spoke with Border Patrol agents.
Police eventually located her, and she reportedly admitted that she had been previously deported in September 2024, and that she had no legal right to be in the U.S.
Shiguano-Vargas pleaded guilty, and now faces up to two years in prison and a potential fine of $250,000.
