A woman who illegally re-entered the United States after being deported has been sentenced to federal prison following a separate violent criminal case in Frederick. Thirty-one-year-old Vanessa Baque was sentenced Monday to six months in federal prison after pleading guilty to illegal re-entry after removal from the United States.
Court records show Baque was first apprehended at the border near Eagle Pass, Texas, in June 2023 and placed into expedited removal proceedings. She was formally deported to Ecuador in August 2023 after an immigration judge ordered her removal. Authorities say she later returned to the United States without authorization in November 2023 and began living in Frederick without obtaining permission from U.S. officials to re-enter the country.
Law enforcement later discovered her unlawful presence during a local criminal investigation. On September 11, 2024, Frederick-area police arrested Baque in connection with a violent incident in which she allegedly placed a knife to a victim’s neck and stabbed the individual in the leg. She was charged with attempted murder and assault, and later pleaded guilty in March 2025 to first-degree assault in state court, receiving a 25-year sentence with all but three years suspended.
Federal prosecutors say the illegal re-entry charge stems from her return to the country after her 2023 removal, and the federal sentence will be served separately from her state conviction. Officials noted that Baque never received authorization or consent from U.S. authorities to re-enter the country after her deportation.
Authorities say the case is part of Operation Take Back America, a federal initiative focused on immigration enforcement and related criminal activity.
By: Dianah Gibson
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