U.S. Customs and Border Protection

EDINBURG (News Release) – Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol (RGV) agents arrested a sex offender and two gang members in two days. 

In the early morning of Jan. 5, McAllen Border Patrol Station (MCS) agents encountered a group of eight migrants, including a 7-year-old traveling with her mother, after they illegally entered the United States near Hidalgo, Texas. A Salvadoran national among the group falsely identified himself using an alias, however, criminal records checks revealed his true identity as Rodrigo Ernesto Quinteros-Mercado, a a registered sex offender. In 2018, Quinteros-Mercado was arrested in Houston, Texas, for indecency with a child by sexual contact. The 29-year-old man was convicted of the second-degree felony and sentenced to five years’ probation. One year later, Quinteros-Mercado was once again arrested in Houston for stalking and child abuse. Consequently, he was removed from the United States in 2019. Quinteros-Mercado has an outstanding warrant by the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.

On Jan. 4, at approximately 12:30 a.m., a group of six migrants attempted to avoid detection and were arrested by MCS agents in La Joya, Texas, after they illegally entered the United States. At a Border Patrol processing facility, a female Salvadoran national was identified as an 18th Street gang member. The 22-year-old has multiple removals from the United States with her most recent removal in August 2021.

On Jan. 5, at approximately 2:00 a.m., a Salvadoran national was arrested along with two other migrants in McAllen, Texas. Criminal records checks revealed the 28-year-old Salvadoran national as a confirmed MS-13 gang member. The gang member has prior removals from the United States.