United States Attorney Lesley A. Woods announced the federal Grand Jury for the District of Nebraska has returned 20 unsealed Indictments charging 21 defendants. Indictments are charging documents that contain one or more individual counts that are merely accusations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Steven R. Harper , age 57, of Omaha, Nebraska, is charged with possession of child pornography with a prior conviction on or about October 30, 2025. The maximum possible penalty if convicted is not less than 10 years and up to 20 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 5 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment.
Scott Wellensiek , age 53, of Omaha, Nebraska, is charged with possession of child pornography with a prior conviction beginning on or about an unknown date, and continuing until on or about May 8, 2026. The maximum possible penalty if convicted is not less than 10 years and up to 20 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 5 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment.
Diego J. Vigil , age 45, of Omaha, Nebraska, is charged with failure to register as a sex offender from at least on or about May 26, 2026, continuing to on or about June 26, 2026. The maximum possible penalty if convicted is up to 10 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 5 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment.
Jose Alfredo Sandoval-Huitzil, age 27, of Omaha, Nebraska, is charged with possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine on or about May 14, 2026. The maximum possible penalty if convicted is not less than 10 years and up to life of imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 5 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment.
Aaron Torres , age 28, of Omaha, Nebraska, is charged with possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of methamphetamine on or about March 17, 2026. The maximum possible penalty if convicted is not less than 5 years and up to 40 years of imprisonment, a $5,000,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 4 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment.
Joel Lopez-Franco , age 32, of Omaha, Nebraska, is charged with distribution of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine on or about May 6, 2026. The maximum possible penalty if convicted is not less than 10 years and up to life of imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 5 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment.
Jermaine Lewis , age 27, of Omaha, Nebraska, is charged with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and two counts of obstruction of justice on or about June 30, 2026. The maximum possible penalty if convicted of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl is 20 years of imprisonment, a $1,000,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 3 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment. The maximum possible penalty if convicted of obstruction of justice is 20 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, up to 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.
Peter Lam , age 31, of Garden Grove, California, and Trong Tran , age 23, of Garden Grove, California, are charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine beginning on or about November 2025, and continuing to on or about June 15, 2026. The maximum possible penalty if convicted is not less than 10 years and up to life of imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not less than 5 years and up to life, and a $100 special assessment.
The following individuals were charged with being an alien, who previously had been excluded, deported and removed from the United States and were found in the United States, without the Acting Attorney General of the United States or his designated successor having expressly consented to the defendant’s reapplication for admission into the United States:
Eli Daniel Rascon-Balderas , age 50
Alberto Antonio Ramos , age 45
Yosimar Cortez-Diaz , age 32
Gerson Mejia-Arenibar , age 28
Rafael Lopez-Miranda , age 30
Pascual Lopez-Coc , age 39
Pedro Ornelas-Soto , age 30
Adolfo Garcia-Luna , age 36
Jose Luis Godinez Chepillo , age 31
The maximum possible penalty if convicted is 2 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a one-year term of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.
The following individuals were charged with being an alien, who previously had been excluded, deported and removed from the United States following a felony conviction and were found in the United States, without the Acting Attorney General of the United States or his designated successor having expressly consented to the defendant’s reapplication for admission into the United States:
Manuel Zavala-Balderas , age 39
The maximum possible penalty if convicted is 10 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a 3-year term of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment
The following individuals were charged with being an alien, who previously had been excluded, deported and removed from the United States following an aggravated felony conviction and were found in the United States, without the Acting Attorney General of the United States or his designated successor having expressly consented to the defendant’s reapplication for admission into the United States:
Angel Heredia-Linares , age 60
Osman Naun Meza-Romero , age 36
The maximum possible penalty if convicted is 20 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a 3-year term of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.
Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office — Nebraska — U.S. Department of Justice press release.