Mexican national sentenced for illegally reentering U.S.

GREAT FALLS - A Mexican citizen illegally traveling in Conrad who used fake immigration documents was sentenced today to time served, two months, and remanded to the custody of the U.S. Border Patrol, Acting U.S. Attorney Mark Steger Smith said.

Armando Leal-Delgado, 52, pleaded guilty in May 2026 to one count of illegal reentry to the United States after removal.

U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.

The government alleged in court documents that after having been removed from the country three times, Delagado again illegally reentered the United States.

A Pondera County Sheriff's deputy stopped a vehicle near a Town Pump gas station in Conrad on April 10, 2026, for having expired registration. Traveling with the deputy was a U.S. Border Patrol agent. Delgado presented a Colorado driver's license and, running his name, the law enforcement officers learned Delgado had previously been deported from the United States.

Law enforcement learned that Delgado was first sent back to Mexico in March 2014 after having been apprehended in Santa Teresa, New Mexico. He was discovered again in New Mexico a month later and was again deported to Mexico in April 2014. Delgado was again discovered in New Mexico in March 2016 and was sent back to Mexico two months later in June 2016. The last two times he was found, Delgado was convicted for reentering the country without permission.

The U.S. Attorney's Office prosecuted the case. The Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted the investigation.