The Department of Homeland Security announced Monday that a Mexican national in the United States illegally has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for violently assaulting an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer during an arrest operation earlier this year in Wichita, Kansas.
According to DHS, Diego Barron-Esquivel pleaded guilty on December 3 to one count of forcible assault of a federal officer and received the statutory maximum sentence for the offense.
Federal officials said the assault occurred on February 28, 2025, when ICE officers were conducting a targeted enforcement operation to arrest Barron-Esquivel, who had a documented history of domestic violence and was accused of repeatedly harassing his former spouse.
During the arrest attempt, DHS said Barron-Esquivel resisted and struck one ICE officer multiple times in the face and head before escalating the attack by strangling the officer with the officer’s badge cord. Authorities said the officer nearly lost consciousness before managing to break free. Barron-Esquivel fled the scene but was later apprehended by local law enforcement.
DHS said Barron-Esquivel has an extensive criminal record that includes arrests for multiple counts of domestic battery, violations of protection orders, aggravated robbery, felony theft, criminal restraint, property damage, drug paraphernalia possession, and other offenses.
Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin stated that the case highlights the risks faced by federal officers during immigration enforcement operations.
“He now faces 20 years in federal prison,” McLaughlin said in a statement, noting that assaults on ICE officers have increased sharply in recent years. She added that the department has emphasized that attacks on law enforcement will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of federal law.
DHS said Barron-Esquivel entered the United States illegally at an unknown date and location and remains in federal custody following sentencing.
