An illegal immigrant listed as a wanted international fugitive for a weapons trafficking charge in Honduras has been ordered jailed in Vermont by a federal judge.

Yubert Yasiel Lopez-Lopez, 31, of Burlington appears to have been living in Vermont for at least two years despite having been ordered removed from the United States four times over the past 11 years, federal court records show.

Lopez had a “red notice” from INTERPOL, the International Criminal Police Organization that tracks major wanted criminals, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Vermont.

Lopez also was recently indicted in Vermont by a federal grand jury for being in the United States after having been ordered removed multiple times to Honduras.  He pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court in Burlington on Friday afternoon.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Turner filed a detention request in federal court in Vermont.

“The defendant has shown a persistent pattern of not obeying conditions imposed by courts,” Turner wrote.

Magistrate Judge Kevin Doyle agreed noting the weight of the evidence against Lopez was strong in the Vermont case and he lacked both a stable residence and ties, including family in the community.  Doyle also ruled Lopez lacked any legal status in the United States and is subject to deportation or removal after he completes any possible prison sentence.  

Doyle also noted Lopez has the pending international warrant from Honduras for weapon trafficking that put him on an INTERPOL alert list.

Assistant Federal Defender Chaz Curlett Jr. asked for 90 days to investigate the case and file possible pre-trial motions.  Doyle set a Sept. 25 deadline.

Lopez was jailed at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans Town. 

Burlington Police encountered Lopez on Feb. 2 when he reported his truck had been stolen a few days earlier on North Winooski Avenue.  It was recovered and returned to him the following day.

It was unclear if the arrest warrant from Honduras was in effect at the time, or if Burlington Police checked for international warrants.  

By at least mid-May, federal authorities were aware of Lopez in Vermont, records show.  Border Patrol Agent Jamie Loomis, who is assigned to the ATF Task Force in Vermont, said in a sworn affidavit that he contacted a former employer of Lopez at a construction company on May 19.  Loomis said he learned Lopez had recently been fired for stealing many tools from the company after working for the business for only a short time earlier this year.

Lopez got to see firsthand the sharp contrasts between the past three U.S. Presidential administrations in dealing differently with illegal immigrants being caught unlawfully in the United States.

Lopez was arrested by the Border Patrol and Homeland Security Investigations near Mathis, Texas in July 2014, two months after he had illegally entered the country, records show.  He was placed into removal proceedings and ordered deported on Nov. 18, 2014 by an Immigration Judge in Houston.  He was given an order under President Barack Obama’s administration blocking him from re-entering the county for 10 years.

Four years later, Lopez illegally re-entered the country near Hidalgo, Texas.  He was later arrested in McCook, Texas and charged and convicted in federal criminal court.  He was sentenced to four days – the time he was held – and deported to Honduras.  Lopez was issued an order under the administration of President Donald Trump prohibiting him from returning for 20 years.

Lopez was caught after an illegal crossing near Yuma, Arizona on Feb. 18, 2022 by the Border Patrol and expelled from the United States during COVID-19 pandemic when “catch and release” was used by President Joe Biden.

He was caught two days later for illegal crossing near Yuma and expelled again under Biden’s rules.

Lopez again illegally re-entered the United States at an unknown subsequent time.  By June 4, 2023, records show he was issued a Vermont driver learner’s permit.  He listed both his mailing and physical address as in Burlington, court records show.

Court records also show Lopez had at least two other interactions with law enforcement in Rhode Island and gave an address of Providence, R.I..  He received citations for no seat beat on July 9, 2023 and for driving with either an expired or without a license on Sept. 3, 2023, records show.

Investigation also noted Lopez obtained a driver’s license in Massachusetts on Oct. 18, 2024 and listed a residence in Worcester, Mass.

The truck Lopez reported stolen to Burlington Police was registered to him in Elgin, South Carolina, records show.

Burlington Police said over the weekend that they actually had a short chase with the truck a few days before it was reported stolen by Lopez on Feb. 2.

An alert Burlington Police officer on Jan. 27 spotted a driver that might be wanted and without a valid license operating a truck, Interim Police Chief Shawn Burke said on Sunday.  The officer asked for warrants and license information from the police dispatcher, but the short pursuit was cut off due to reckless driving and attempts to evade, he said.

Police spotted the truck again on February 3 with another person behind the wheel and with a different stolen license plate, Burke said.  The driver was arrested for operating without the owner’s consent and driving while his license was suspended, police said. The vehicle was towed and returned to Lopez.  

Agent Loomis sworn out a criminal complaint in federal court May 30 and requested an arrest warrant for being an illegal immigrant in the United States after being deported.  It was approved and sealed until Lopez could be arrested.

Law enforcement attempted to locate Lopez at all his various addresses, but investigation showed there was no evidence he had actually lived at the locations he provided, records note.

“The use of these different addresses across several states indicates that either that the defendant is itinerant or that he is purposely providing false information about his whereabouts to avoid detection,” Turner wrote in his detention motion.

The international warrant for arms smuggling “provides him ample motivation to flee from this court’s jurisdiction as these proceedings may result in his return to Honduras,” Turner wrote in asking that he be detained.

Lopez was eventually found in Massachusetts and appeared on June 10 in U.S. District Court in Boston for a removal hearing.  Lopez waived his right to an identity hearing, records show.

Magistrate Judge David H. Hennessy in Boston ordered Lopez held until he could be brought to Vermont for his initial hearing on the criminal complaint and a detention hearing.