A man living in the U.S. without legal status pleaded guilty in Del Rio federal court to possessing child pornography, a charge that carries a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison. The case was heard in Del Rio federal court.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas confirmed the plea in a statement announced via U.S. Attorney WDTX
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas announced the plea in a post from U.S. Attorney WDTX. The case was brought under both Operation Take Back America and Project Safe Childhood, two federal initiatives aimed at combating immigration-related crime and online child exploitation, according to the
U.S. Department of Justice
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A Border District Under Heavy Caseload
The Western District of Texas, which oversees the Del Rio federal court, covers 68 counties and nearly 93,000 square miles, sharing 809 miles of border with Mexico and serving an estimated 7.6 million residents, per the Justice Department's own description of the district under U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons. The district saw 250 new immigration-related criminal cases filed during the seven-day span from July 24 to July 31, 2026.
That surge reflects the mandate of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Justice Department initiative launched in March 2025 by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. The program pooled federal task force resources to target illegal immigration, transnational cartels and violent crime, per the department's own policy memo. Diaz-Aguilera's prosecution was also pursued under Project Safe Childhood, a federal initiative dating back to May 2006 that coordinates law enforcement at every level to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children online.
Statutory Penalties and What Comes Next
Under federal statute 18 U.S.C. § 2252A, possession of child pornography carries a maximum sentence of 10 years, while offenses involving material depicting prepubescent minors can carry 10 to 20 years, according to Joshi Law. A conviction under the statute also triggers mandatory sex offender registration and can include lifetime supervised release once any prison sentence is served, the Justice Department has noted in its citizens' guide to federal child pornography law.
The official sentencing date for Diaz-Aguilera has not yet been announced, and the dossier underlying this report does not specify the quantity or nature of the digital evidence that escalated his potential maximum penalty to 20 years. It also remains unclear whether federal immigration detainers or formal deportation proceedings will follow once any prison term is complete.
Part of a Pattern in Del Rio Federal Court
Diaz-Aguilera's case follows a string of similar prosecutions moving through the same courthouse. In August, 26-year-old Ecuadorian national Jefferson Chancay-Sanchez, who had entered the U.S. unlawfully near Eagle Pass, was sentenced in Del Rio to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography hidden inside a calculator app on his phone — a case Hoodline previously covered. Another case involved 32-year-old Honduran national Nolber Rolando Rosales-Rosales, who was sentenced to 10 years in the same court for attempting to import child sexual abuse material through the Eagle Pass port of entry using Telegram.
The Del Rio division has also handled cases beyond border crossings. In September, a federal jury convicted 26-year-old Brandon Westfall of Conroe on enticement of a minor charges following an FBI investigation; the case was brought under Project Safe Childhood.
