WESLACO – A Mexican national was sentenced for assaulting a U.S. Border Patrol agent near Hebbronville, east of Laredo.

U.S. District Judge Diana Saldana ordered Miguel Cabrera-Rangel to eight years in prison. That is the maximum jail time he faced.

Federal prosecutors said Cabrera was part of a group trying to enter the country illegally. When agents found the group, Cabrera struggled with the agent.

Court documents reveal Cabrera struck the agent and somehow got ahold of the agent’s service flashlight. He used the flashlight to hit the agent in the face, breaking his nose.

At the hearing, the court heard from the agent who was assaulted. He told the court about continuing issues he is having with his eyes as a result of the attack.

He suffered from the detached retina and developed cataracts from a surgery shortly after.

Cabrerra fled the scene of the attack and was later found near Corpus Christi on a fishing boat in Copano Bay.

The 55-year-old Mexican national is expected to face deportation following his prison sentence.

He will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility.