Brazilian sentenced in U.S. entry attempt

BANGOR – A Brazilian man was sentenced on Monday in U.S. District Court to five days in jail for attempting to enter the United States illegally.

Renato Foresto, 25, of Sao Paulo was arrested on Monday morning in Calais after he admitted to walking across the railroad bridge near the Milltown border crossing north of Calais.

He faced up to six months in prison and a fine of up to $5,000 for the misdemeanor charge.

Foresto entered the country on a tourist visa in 2000, but overstayed the 2001 expiration date, according to court documents.

In December 2004, he flew from Newark, N.J., to Brazil. In May, Foresto attempted to enter the country at Buffalo, N.Y., but was refused entry because he overstayed his previous visa.

The Brazilian man told border agents that he had taken a bus from Toronto to St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada, because he had been told it was easier to cross into the U.S. at the Maine border than in New York or Vermont.

Foresto, whose pants legs were wet, according to court documents, told border agents on Monday that he had attempted to swim the St. Croix River, but had turned back due to fatigue and then crossed the railroad bridge.

Chad W. Lamphear, 31, of Tennessee, drowned last week when he tried to enter Canada by swimming across the St. Croix River from Calais to meet his Canadian girlfriend.