Gulfport, Miss. - A Honduran national was sentenced yesterday to 21 months in federal prison for unlawful reentry by an alien deported or removed after conviction of a felony, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Jason E. Schneider, Acting Chief Patrol Agent of the Border Patrol’s New Orleans Sector.
Williams Perez-Aguirre, 30, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Taylor B. McNeel in Gulfport. Perez-Aguirre also was ordered to serve three years of supervised release following completion of his prison sentence. He may also face Department of Homeland Security removal proceedings. Perez-Aguirre was convicted after pleading guilty on March 8, 2021.
According to court documents, on January 4, 2021, the U.S. Border Patrol stopped a vehicle driven by Perez-Aguirre, who did not have a driver’s license. Record checks revealed he was an illegal alien with a removal history and he was placed under arrest. Both Perez-Aguirre and one of his passengers, Encaracion Aguirre-Lopez were taken to the Gulfport Border Patrol Station for processing.
Records showed that in 2016, Perez-Aguirre was removed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement from Texas to Honduras. He was later arrested in May 2017 in Arlington, Texas for deadly conduct discharging a firearm at an individual. He was convicted of a Texas state felony and sentenced to two years in prison. He was physically removed again to Honduras on May 17, 2018.
Passenger Encaracion Aguirre-Lopez also pleaded guilty and was convicted of unlawful return of an alien after removal. On May 14, 2021, Aguirre-Lopez was sentenced to “time served" (4 months and 11 days) followed by 1 year of supervised release. Aguirre-Lopez also is subject to removal from the United States
Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, Darren J. LaMarca, praised the investigative work of the U.S. Border Patrol and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Assistant United States Attorney Stan Harris prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
