A Guyanese woman, who was deported from the United States just over 20 years ago, is now facing up to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to illegally re-entering the country.
A news release from the Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of New York, identified the woman as Indrawattie Sookram, 40, who returned to the United States in the very next year after she had been jailed and deported back to Guyana.
She pleaded guilty to the crime on Monday.
According to the release, Sookram was arrested in the US Virgin Islands in February, 1999. In August, 1999, she was convicted in the United States District Court of the District of the Virgin Islands for using a false passport, a false visa and a false identity to enter the United States. She was subsequently removed from the United States to Guyana on September 3rd, 1999, after serving six months in jail.
However, on May 17th, 2018, Sookram was arrested by a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Agent in Schenectady, New York. A fingerprint check of Sookram resulted in the discovery of her prior conviction and removal under the name Maryan Husain. Sookram admitted that in 2000, following her removal to Guyana, she returned to the United States without permission.
The release revealed that Sookram faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to US$250,000 when she is sentenced by Senior United States Judge Fredrick J. Scullin, Jr. on May 20th, 2019. It added that a defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
