Jacinto Ibarra Ortiz

August 8, 2016
BY ROBIN FITZGERALD

A deported felon found in Gulfport has admitted he illegally re-entered the United States by crossing the Mexican border somewhere in Texas.

Jacinto Ibarra Ortiz, 36, is held for sentencing Nov. 1 in U.S. District Court.

He had been deported 11 years ago after conviction on a violent crime in North Carolina, court papers show.

Ortiz had a firearm, a Mississippi vehicle tag and was using an alias on an identification card when Gulfport police found him in a Jan. 4 traffic stop, court papers show.

Police police pulled him over on a careless driving violation and found probable cause to search his 2004 Dodge Ram, an affidavit said.

He claimed his name was Jose Brayan Ibarra. He had an expired driver’s license and his ID card implied he is from North Carolina, but his card was not issued by that state, a document said.

Police also found drug paraphernalia in his pickup truck and a Jennings .22-caliber pistol tucked between the seats.

Ortiz confessed he’d crossed the Mexican border illegally, said the sworn statement of a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

His fingerprints and a database check revealed the U.S. Department of Homeland Security had deported him in 2005, and he hadn’t received permission to re-enter the United States.

Ortiz was convicted of aggravated assault May 9, 1997, in Cherokee County, Georgia. The county is part of the Atlanta metro area.

He was deported Feb. 7, 2005. Ortiz pleaded guilty to an illegal re-entry charge July 28.

He has been held with no bond since his arrest.

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