IRA Activist Admits Entering U.S. Illegally, Agrees to Leave
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An activist with the political wing of the Irish Republican Army pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of entering the United States illegally, and has agreed to leave the country voluntarily.
U.S. Magistrate Charles F. Eick sentenced Siobhan O’Hanlon to five days in prison, time she already has served.
Under a plea agreement with federal prosecutors, O’Hanlon agreed to leave the United States and a felony false-statement charge against her was dropped.
O’Hanlon declined to talk to reporters outside the federal courtroom in downtown Los Angeles.
O’Hanlon was arrested at a meeting of the Irish Northern Aid Committee in Whittier on Nov. 11 on charges of lying to U.S. Immigration officials about her prior criminal conviction for possessing explosives in Northern Ireland.
She arrived in the United States in late October for a speaking and fund-raising tour.
Two other Irish activists who were arrested with O’Hanlon already have returned to Northern Ireland, Stratton said.
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