¡Increíble! Drug dealer who told judge he would be a farmer after deportation to Honduras returns to San Francisco court
Another Honduran deported as part of the U.S. Attorney’s ‘fast track’ scheme to rid San Francisco of illegal alien drug dealers appeared at the city’s federal courthouse today having returned to the U.S.
Kevin Ruiz-Antunez sold methamphetamine to an undercover SFPD officer in March 2024 at UN Plaza. When arrested he was found with fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and hundreds of dollars in cash.
A month and a half later Ruiz-Antunez pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute drugs, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson to a ‘time served plus one day’ term and then handed to immigration officials for deportation.
It transpired that he returned to the United States and was caught barely ten miles from the border town of Andrade, Cailfornia.
His reappearance today will surprise many, including his public defender who assured Judge Thompson in May 2024 that he “plans to move back in with his parents and will likely return to agricultural work” when he got back to Honduras.
Today at San Francisco federal courthouse U.S. Magistrate Judge Alex Tse heard that the defendant was accused of violating his probation conditions. Tse remanded him in custody and ordered him to appear before Judge Thompson on September 12.
On May 10 2024 Ruiz-Antunez pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was handed a 54-day ‘time served’ sentence.
To persuade the judge to endorse such a lenient disposition, defense attorneys claimed that he was from a poor family and traveled to the U.S. to do construction work, of which there was not enough, and so he took up selling drugs.
“The proposed sentence would be sufficient to deter him from criminal conduct in the future. Mr Ruiz-Antunez understands that far more severe consequences would await him were he to return to the U.S. unlawfully and commit other crimes. He does not intend to do so.”
Ruiz-Antunez came to authorities’ attention again in April of this year when he was captured in California. He pleaded guilty to being a deported alien found in the United States at San Diego federal courthouse, was given a ‘time served’ 131-day sentence on August 18 2025 and transferred back to San Francisco for his appearance today.
His public defender in San Diego assured the court that, while in custody, his client had come to realize that he needed to reprioritize what was important in his life. He pledged to stay in Honduras and find legal employment there.
Today the court was told that Ruiz-Antunez was accused of violating two of his supervised release conditions: that he not break another local, state or federal law and that he reentered the U.S. without the permission of the Secretary of Homeland Security.
The case continues.
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