Ajo Station Border Patrol agents encountered and arrested three male Mexican nationals who entered the United States illegally southwest of Ajo Saturday night, one of whom was later identified as a Sureño gang member.
Record checks conducted during processing revealed an extensive criminal history of 29-year-old Eduardo Sanchez-Villa, a confirmed member of the Sureño gang.
Sanchez was sentenced to three years’ incarceration in 2008 for assault with a deadly weapon and participation in a criminal gang in Santa Barbara County, California.
Sanchez will remain in federal custody pending prosecution for criminal immigration violations and could face additional prosecution for re-entering the U.S. as a previously-deported felon. The other two Mexican nationals will be processed for immigration violations.