Previously Deported Sexual Predator in Texas Sent to Prison for Child Porn

A previously deported sexual predator living in South Texas will spend 15 years in prison on child porn charges and face another deportation.

On Tuesday, 35-year-old Jose Ricardo Zamora Ibarra went before U.S. District Judge Randy Crane in McAllen, where he received a 180-month prison sentence. Zamora pleaded guilty to a federal charge of child pornography possession and to one count of illegal re-entry in December 2021.

The case began on June 9, 2021, when agents with U.S. Homeland Security Investigations “encountered” Zamora in Hidalgo, Texas, and learned that he was in the country illegally. Court documents do not reveal details about the initial encounter. However, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Zamora admitted to downloading more than 250 images and videos of child porn. Federal prosecutors claim that a search of a laptop and an external memory drive revealed that Zamora collected images and video of prepubescent children.

Zamora is a registered sex offender in Texas following an earlier conviction on the charge of sexual assault of a child. However, Zamora did not spend seven years in state prison since a Texas judge deferred his sentence on October 17, 2019, and federal authorities deported him on January 28, 2020.

Court documents revealed that Zamora re-entered the country illegally in March 2021 and had been living in the town of Palmview.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.