LUIS MEJIA-ALAS, a 30-year-old citizen of El Salvador, has been sentenced to 20 months in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm while in the United States without legal status. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On January 29, 2025, an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper attempted to stop Mejia-Alas’s pickup truck on NW 10th Street in Oklahoma City. Mejia-Alas fled, leading officers on a brief high-speed chase before crashing into a cart return cage at a shopping center parking lot. He then left the vehicle and tried to escape on foot but was apprehended shortly after. Authorities found a firearm on the floorboard of his truck.
A federal Grand Jury indicted Mejia-Alas on March 18, 2025, for being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm. On June 3, 2025, he pleaded guilty and admitted both to possessing the firearm and to being unlawfully present in the United States.
At his sentencing hearing on September 23, 2025, U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton imposed the prison term and highlighted the seriousness of the offense.
U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester stated: “This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.”
The investigation involved Homeland Security Investigations and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Nichols, Jr., prosecuted the case.
Reference is made to public filings for additional information.
