Authorities arrest convicted felon who allegedly entered U.S. illegally

An aggravated felon who allegedly entered the United States illegally near the Calexico Port of Entry was arrested by Border Patrol Wednesday afternoon.

Customs and Border Protection said at around 7:45 p.m., agents arrested a man presumed to have entered the U.S. illegally about 11 miles west of the Port of Calexico. He was taken to the El Centro station where a criminal history screening identified him as 51-year-old Guillermo Garcia-Avitia.

Authorities said they discovered Garcia-Avitia, a Mexican national, is a convicted aggravated felon. He was convicted in San Diego in 1992 for transportation of narcotics and then sentenced to four years in prison. He was deported in 1996 after serving his sentence for the drug conviction.

Garcia-Avitia is in federal custody as he awaits prosecution for re-entry after removal.