Dominican man pleads guilty to illegally re-entering U.S.

AKWESASNE — A Dominican man pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court Friday to illegally re-entering the United States following removal, according to Syracuse-based United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian.

Rafael Zapata, 67, of the Dominican Republic, faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, up to $250,000 in fines and three years’ post-release supervision.

Zapata had been deported from the United States to the Dominican Republic in 2008 after being convicted of a drug trafficking crime in 2003 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, according to Hartunian.

He will be sentenced on Feb. 3 by United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino.