A Honduran man with a previous conviction for sexual assault of a child was sentenced to 21 months in prison for illegal re-entry into the United States, federal prosecutors announced. Neri Farid Ardon-Calix, 30, entered a guilty plea earlier this year after being discovered hiding in a railcar near Eagle Pass on January 13.
Ardon-Calix's history with U.S. law enforcement dates back to a September 2023 deportation following his conviction and prison sentence in Houston. The case was investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and presided over by U.S. District Judge Ernest Gonzalez. "Ardon-Calix was a danger to the community," Judge Gonzalez noted during the sentencing on September 11. This statement was released by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas.
The 21-month sentence was handed down by Judge Gonzalez in a federal court in Del Rio. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas, who underscored the severity of Ardon-Calix's criminal background and the threat it posed to public safety.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Daisy Gonzalez, who prosecuted the case, has not commented on the sentencing. However, the U.S. Attorney's Office release stressed the collaboration between various agencies in securing the conviction of Ardon-Calix.
