Border Patrol agents on Monday arrested a convicted rapist who was trying to re-enter the U.S. illegally north of Tecate.
Shortly after 8 p.m., agents spotted a man crossing the border about five miles east of the Tecate Port of Entry. He was traced to thick brush about one-half mile north of the international boundary.
Agents questioned the 28-year-old man, who admitted that he was a Mexican national illegally in the U.S.
A subsequent records check revealed that the man had served three years in prison for a 2011 rape conviction in Santa Rosa.
“Our Border Patrol agents did a great service to our communities by preventing this previously convicted felon from entering the United States,” said Chief Patrol Agent Richard Barlow.
The man is being held in Department of Homeland Security custody and faces federal criminal charges for re-entering the U.S. as a prior deportee.
Since October 1, Border Patrol agents in San Diego sector have intercepted 14,449 individuals trying to illegally enter the U.S.