INDIANAPOLIS — A man who was deported three times back to Mexico and barred from ever returning to the United States was discovered to have once more illegally entered the country after being arrested for domestic violence in Marion County. Pedro Zuniga-Lopez, 35, pleaded guilty to illegal reen try of an alien after deportation in federal court. He was sentenced to serve three years in federal prison. IDOC: Indiana inmate missing after walking away from work crew According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Zuniga-Lopez was being imprisoned by the Indiana Department of Correction after being convicted of battering his pregnant girlfriend in Marion County in 2024. IDOC officials realized Zuniga-Lopez had been deported multiple times in the past and notified ICE that Zuniga-Lopez was once again in the country and under arrest for breaking U.S. laws. Zuniga-Lopez has a lengthy criminal history which includes being deported in 2018 and twice in 2020. He's been convicted of breaking and entering and domestic battery along with illegal reentry into the United States. “While in the United States unlawfully, this defendant has repeatedly broken the law, demonstrating time and time again a fundamental lack of respect for this country” said John E. Childress, acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. In 2024, while in the country illegally, Zuniga-Lopez was accused of attacking his pregnant girlfriend after she told him that she did not want drugs in their home. Zuniga-Lopez allegedly swung at her face with closed fists and continued to punch the woman after she'd fallen to the floor, the DOJ stated. This attack also occurred in front of three children. “This defendant is a proven menace to society, including toward some of the most vulnerable individuals in our community—women and children. Our office is committed to working with our ICE partners to charge and convict aliens that illegally re-enter the country, especially if they are a risk to public safety," Childress said. Docs: Man arrested for illegally transporting people from Mexico to Muncie Zuniga-Lopez would end up fleeing from police after forcing his way into his girlfriend's home through a broken window. He was caught, sentenced, and convicted in Marion County. Court records show Zuniga-Lopez was sentenced to only 80 days in state prison as part of a plea deal. The rest of his 1,275-day sentence was suspended. Now, after his plea in federal court, he faces 37 months in federal prison followed by two years of supervised release. “Criminal aliens that continue to cross into our country need to face consequences to discourage them from committing crimes that endanger our communities," said ERO Chicago’s Assistant Field Office Director Douglas Thompson. A booking photo of Pedro Zuniga-Lopez was not provided at this time. ...read more read less