Judge convicts Ecuadorian migrant of trespassing on newly formed National Defense Area near El Paso

Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.

---

A federal district judge in El Paso convicted an undocumented immigrant of entering a newly designated defense area in West Texas created by the federal government as part of its legal strategy to end illegal border crossings.

Dario Javier Trejo-Burbano, an Ecuadorian national, was found guilty of entering the country illegally and entering military property by U.S. District Judge David Briones on Tuesday. Both charges are petty misdemeanors, and Briones sentenced Trejo-Burbano to time served plus one business day.

Trejo-Burbano entered U.S. territory the morning of May 8 after crossing the Rio Grande, according to court documents, subsequently stepping into the National Defense Area. The zone, which runs 63 miles on the border near El Paso, was established in early May to allow U.S. soldiers to patrol the area. A 60-mile stretch of land in New Mexico was similarly designated in April.

The Ecuadorian was also charged with a misdemeanor violation of defense property security regulation, but he was acquitted by a jury, according to court documents.

The first jury trial of an immigrant crossing into the new defense area also ended in acquittal earlier in June. Adely Vanessa De La Cruz-Alvarez was also found guilty by a judge of entering the country illegally and sentenced to time served plus one business day. Dozens of people who have crossed into the defense area have pleaded guilty to similar charges, according to the Department of Justice.

The cases are being prosecuted under a new strategy from federal immigration officials to charge immigrants with trespassing on military property as they enter the country through the Southern border, even as crossings are at record lows. The area is marked with 1 foot wide and 2 feet tall signs designating the zone as U.S. Army property. Those signs became a point of contention during De La Cruz-Alvarez’s trial as her defense attorney argued they weren’t present where her client crossed and are illegible from a distance.

---

Big news: 20 more speakers join the TribFest lineup! New additions include Margaret Spellings, former U.S. secretary of education and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center; Michael Curry, former presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church; Beto O’Rourke, former U.S. Representative, D-El Paso; Joe Lonsdale, entrepreneur, founder and managing partner at 8VC; and Katie Phang, journalist and trial lawyer.

Get tickets.

TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.