Jose Raul Maita, a 55-year-old citizen of Ecuador, pleaded guilty on April 9 before U.S. District Judge Vernon D. Oliver in Hartford to the charge of unlawful reentry of a removed alien, according to David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Maita’s case is significant due to his history of prior deportations and criminal convictions in the United States. Authorities say that after being granted legal permanent resident status in June 1996 through marriage to a U.S. citizen, Maita was convicted in February 1998 in New York for first-degree sexual abuse involving a nine-year-old victim. He was sentenced to probation and required to register as a sex offender.
Subsequent years saw further offenses by Maita, including convictions for failure to register as a sex offender and driving while intoxicated. His probation was revoked in August 2001, leading to incarceration and eventual deportation back to Ecuador in October 2003.
Despite these actions, officials said Maita illegally returned multiple times. In November 2006 he was convicted again for operating under the influence; later offenses included another failure-to-register conviction and an unlawful reentry conviction by federal authorities in October 2008 before his second removal from the country in August 2009.
Most recently, on September 20, 2025, Connecticut State Police arrested Maita—who used an alias—on charges related to illegal operation of a motor vehicle without a license and while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. He was released on bond but subsequently charged with unlawful reentry by federal prosecutors following his arrest by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations agents on March 18, 2026.
Judge Oliver scheduled sentencing for July 2; Maita faces up to twenty years imprisonment if convicted at sentencing. The investigation has been conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations with prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel.
This case falls under Operation Take Back America—a Department of Justice initiative aimed at combating illegal immigration and transnational criminal organizations.