United States of America v. Roberto Nicolas-Simon

Urbana, Illinois, criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with failing to update registration as a sex offender as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) and being a removed alien illegally present in United States.

The government presented evidence that Nicolas-Simon was unlawfully present in the United States when he was convicted of Aggravated Criminal Sexual Abuse in Champaign County. He acknowledged his registration obligation as a sex offender before being removed from the United States to Guatemala in 2021. Sometime in 2024, he illegally reentered the United States and lived in Champaign without updating his sex offender registration until he was discovered in a joint Immigration and Customs Enforcement and United States Marshals Service investigation.

Also at the hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Colin S. Bruce found Nicolas-Simon’s illegal reentry offense was subject to an enhanced range of penalties as he committed his sex offense prior to being removed from the United States for the first time. Judge Bruce further found that Nicolas-Simon should serve five years of supervised release after his imprisonment with a specific condition that he not illegally reenter the United States. Violating that condition would subject him to additional penalties, in addition to a new prosecution for illegal reentry.

Nicolas-Simon was convicted after pleading guilty to these offenses in September, 2025. Upon the completion of his sentence, he will enter into removal proceedings.

Nicolas-Simon faced statutory penalties of up to ten years of imprisonment and up to a $250,000 fine for each offense. He could have also received up to three years of supervised release for being illegally present in the United States and at least a five-year term and a maximum life term of supervised release for failure to update his registration as a sex offender.

SORNA is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 and provides a comprehensive set of minimum standards for sex offender registration and notification in the United States. SORNA seeks to strengthen the nationwide network of sex offender registration and notification programs, in part by requiring registered sex offenders to register and keep their registration current in each jurisdiction in which they reside, work, or go to school.

The case investigation was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, in collaboration with the United States Marshals Service. Assistant United States Attorney William J. Lynch represented the government in the prosecution.

Defendant is committed to the custody of the BOP for a term of 14 months. Said term shall consist of 14 months on each of Counts 1s and 2s, to be served concurrently. Following release from custody, the Defendant shall serve a 5 year term of Supervised Release. Said term shall consist of 3 years on Count 1s and 5 years on Count 2s, to be served concurrently. $200 Special Assessment imposed.