PHILADELPHIA, PA — United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that a Honduran national unlawfully residing in Philadelphia has been sentenced on Tuesday to seven months in prison after federal agents discovered a loaded firearm in his waistband during an April arrest.
Marvin Enrique Pena-Portillo, 38, received the prison term — along with two years of supervised release — from United States District Judge Mia Roberts Perez following his guilty plea to possession of a firearm by a felon. He pleaded guilty in July, waiving prosecution by indictment after being charged by information in June.
According to federal authorities, agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested Pena-Portillo on April 15, 2025, for immigration violations. During the arrest, agents recovered a loaded 9mm semiautomatic pistol from his waistband. Court filings state that Pena-Portillo admitted to possessing the weapon.
Records show that in August 2024, in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Pena-Portillo pleaded guilty to carrying an illegal firearm in public and was sentenced to two years of probation for that offense.
Federal officials noted that the case was prosecuted under Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Justice Department initiative focused on combating illegal immigration, dismantling cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and targeting violent offenders.
The investigation was handled by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations and the ATF. Assistant United States Attorney Robert Eckert prosecuted the case.
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