Rigoberto Rodriguez-Moreno, 44, a Mexican national illegally residing in Lufkin, has pleaded guilty to illegal reentry by a previously deported person in the Eastern District of Texas. The plea was entered before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christine L. Stetson on June 16, 2025.
Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs announced the conviction, emphasizing the ongoing efforts of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative aimed at combating illegal immigration and transnational criminal organizations.
According to information presented in court, on March 4, 2025, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) received information that Rodriguez-Moreno was being held in the Angelina County Jail on a state arrest warrant. An HSI investigation confirmed that Rodriguez-Moreno had been previously deported from the United States to Mexico on October 4, 2017, and lacked permission to re-enter the country.
Immigration records reveal this is Rodriguez-Moreno's second deportation, with the first occurring in 1999. He also has previous federal convictions for bringing in and harboring illegal aliens in 1999 and illegal reentry by a deported person in 2015.
Rodriguez-Moreno now faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison, followed by deportation. His sentencing will be determined by the court after a presentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office. He also still faces unrelated state charges in Angelina County.
This case was investigated by the Lufkin Homeland Security Investigations and the Angelina County Sheriff's Office and prosecuted by the Lufkin Division of the U.S Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas.
