Man charged with illegal re-entry into US, illegal possession of 16 guns

JACKSON, Tenn. — A Honduran man faces charges including illegal re-entry into the U.S. and illegal firearm possession after being found with multiple guns in Jackson, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

A federal grand jury on Monday indicted Melvin Melendez-Garcia, 32, for illegal re-entry and being an alien in possession of 16 firearms, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

D. Michael Dunavant, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the indictment Tuesday.

According to the indictment, Melendez-Garcia, aka “Joker,” aka Melvin Melendez, aka Melvin Arteaga-Rivas, re-entered the U.S. after being deported and removed from the country on multiple prior occasions and did not have consent to reapply for admission into the country, the release states.

Melendez is also charged with 16 counts of being an alien in possession of several firearms including semi-automatic high-capacity rifles, shotguns, pistols and revolvers, according to the release.

Melendez faces 16 additional counts of being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of the same firearms, the release states.

If convicted, Melendez will face up to 10 years in federal prison for illegal re-entry as well as up to 10 years in federal prison for each of the firearm counts.