Source: Office of United States Attorneys
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The last of three defendants was sentenced today to prison for harboring aliens that arrived in Puerto Rico from the Dominican Republic.
Together, defendants Katia Janette Nieves, Junior Melo, and Iris J. Nieves-Ríos coordinated the pickup in August 2023 of at least 50 individuals arriving unlawfully via boat on the west side of Puerto Rico from the Dominican Republic. Despite knowing that these individuals were aliens not lawfully in the United States, the defendants transported them to a residence in San Juan, Puerto Rico, harbored them, and demanded money from family members in order to release the individuals.
Junior Melo was sentenced on December 16, 2024, to 72 months in prison and five years of supervised release. Katia Janette Nieves was sentenced on January 15, 2025, to 72 months in prison and five years of supervised release. Iris J. Nieves-Ríos was sentenced today to 24 months in prison and five years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow of the District of Puerto Rico; and Joseph González, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI and the Puerto Rico Police Bureau investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Daynelle Álvarez-Lora and Assistant U.S. Attorney Linet Suárez prosecuted the case.
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