GATOR NEWS Edwin Armando Sanchez-Montiel Shipped Out Again after Felony Conviction in Sen. Chris Van Hollen’s Hometown and Boomerang from El Salvador

GATOR NEWS Edwin Armando Sanchez-Montiel Shipped Out Again after Felony Conviction and Boomerang from El Salvador

Greenbelt, Maryland – Edwin Armando Sanchez-Montiel, 33, a citizen and national of El Salvador, pled guilty to illegally re-entering the United States following a felony conviction for accessory after the fact, murder first degree.

Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the guilty pleas with Acting Field Office Director Nikita Baker, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE-ERO), Baltimore Field Office.

Six suspects have been arrested in connection with a November 2022 homicide and shooting in Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park.

Police say that on Wednesday, November 9, 2022, Montgomery County Department of Police 3rd District officers responded to the 9000 block of Piney Branch Road for multiple calls of shots fired. Upon arrival, officers located an adult male suffering from gunshot wounds in a wooded area behind an apartment complex. The victim was transported to an area hospital in serious but stable condition.

As K-9 officers canvassed the crime scene, they discovered a deceased male with apparent gunshot wounds, close to the area where the shooting victim was found. The body was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and identified as 20-year-old Edvin Moises Agustin Leon. The victim had no known address.

Through the course of the investigation, detectives learned that the shooting and homicide were gang-related.

Several suspects were identified and arrested between December 2022 and May 2023, in connection with the shooting and the homicide:

Sender Emanuel Godoy-Lemus, age 19, of Silver Spring, first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder

Edgard Vladimir Castro-Contreras, age 19, unknown address, first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder

Brayan Bonilla-Andrade, age 22, of College Park, first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery and conspiracy to commit murder

Daniel Yaque Del Cid, age 29, of Greenbelt, first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery, and conspiracy to commit murder

Edwin Armando Sanchez-Montiel, age 31, of Silver Spring, accessory after the fact to murder

Jonathan Edwardo Videz, age 28, of Montgomery Village, first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, first-degree assault, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and several other charges 

Montgomery County Circuit Court records show that Sanches-Montiel (DOB 11/26/1991) resided at 8230 New Hampshire Avenue in Silver Spring, Maryland, when he was charged on January 19, 2023, by Montgomery County Police Officer M. Carin with accessory after the fact first-degree murder and held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail.  Court records show that Sanchez-Montiel entered a guilty plea on September 5, 2023, before Circuit Court Judge Theresa Chernosky. The plea deal with the Montgomery County State’s Attorney, Andrew McCarthy, provided for a sentence of five years in prison, with all but eighteen months suspended.

According to court filings, Sanchez-Montiel voluntarily entered the United States around October 18, 2006, near Hidalgo, Texas, but United States Border Patrol apprehended him.  Then the United States Border Patrol served Sanchez-Montiel with a Notice to Appear before the Department of Justice Executive Office of Immigration Review.  On February 12, 2007, an immigration judge issued a decision ordering Sanchez-Montiel’s removal.  Sanchez-Montiel failed to appear, so the hearing was held in absentia.

Then on January 23, 2023, law enforcement arrested Sanchez-Montiel, charging him with Accessory After the Fact, Murder First Degree. Sanchez-Montiel pled guilty and received a sentence of five years in prison with all but 18 months suspended.

On January 29, 2024, after he served his sentence, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested Sanchez-Montiel.  Then on February 9, Sanchez-Montiel was removed from the United States to El Salvador via airplane, but he voluntarily and unlawfully re-entered the United States without inspection by an immigration officer on an unknown date.

ICE officers again encountered Sanchez-Montiel in Montgomery County, Maryland, on July 27, 2025, where they took him into custody. Sanchez-Montiel did not obtain consent at any time from the Attorney General of the United States, or from the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, for readmission into the United States. Sentencing is scheduled for Wednesday, November 26, at 10 a.m.

U.S. Attorney Hayes commended ICE-ERO for its work in the investigation.  Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brooke Oki and Joel Crespo who are prosecuting the case.

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.