HOUSTON, TX– A 54-year-old Mexican national who illegally resided in Houston has been sentenced for illegally reentering the country without authorization, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

Isidor Lagunas-Estrada pleaded guilty Jan. 14.

U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison has now ordered him to serve the nearly six-year federal prison sentence. In imposing the term of imprisonment, the court considered the dangerousness of his crimes, lack of respect for the law and need of deterrence. The sentence will run consecutively to his state conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI).

Lagunas-Estrada was removed from the United States in 2020 following his fourth DUI conviction.

The investigation revealed he illegally reentered again and was found in the United States in October 2022 when he was arrested and later convicted for his fifth DUI.

He has been and will remain in custody.

Immigration Customs Enforcement – Enforcement Removal Operations conducted the investigation. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Carrie Law prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.