By Allison Campbell
The Wichita Eagle
WICHITA, Kan. — A 23-year-old man was given the maximum sentence — 20 years in prison — after he “intentionally assaulted and strangled” an on-duty Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deportation officer in Wichita, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Kansas.
“Violence against law enforcement is completely unacceptable and will be dealt with very seriously,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Kriegshauser said in the release.
| REGISTER: Training the brain: Turning stress science into automatic performance
According to court documents Diego Barron-Esquivel, who was described as a Mexican national in the release, “did intentionally and forcibly assault, resist, oppose, impede, intimidate and interfere with” an ICE agent during an altercation on Feb. 28. As a result, the officer was injured, the press release read.
Barron-Esquivel was arrested on March 21 and pleaded guilty in September to forcibly assaulting a federal officer. Court documents show that he asked for leniency.
“ ... I am prepared to accept any punishment permitted by law which the Court sees fit to impose. However, I respectfully request the Court to consider, in mitigation of punishment, that I have voluntarily entered a plea of Guilty,” his guilty plea petition read.
On Dec. 4, a judge sentenced Barron-Esquivel to the maximum penalty: 20 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
Court documents suggest that after Barron-Esquivel completes his sentence, he will be “released to the custody of a duly authorized immigration official for removal proceedings in accordance with the immigration laws.”
“And if removed from this country he shall remain outside the United States unless legally authorized to re-enter. Upon which the defendant must report to the nearest probation office within 72 hours after re-entry,” court records read.
According to Barron-Esquivel’s guilty plea petition, he indicated that he understood that conviction of a criminal offense may result in deportation from the United States, “exclusion from admission to the United States, and/or denial of naturalization.”
© 2025 The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, Kan.). Visit www.kansas.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
