6 Human Smugglers Sentenced for Alien Trafficking and Harboring

Six people were sentenced Tuesday, December 18, 2012, following their convictions in an illegal alien harboring/transportation conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas. The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The defendants sentenced Dec. 18 are: Christian Lara-Reyes, 29; Victor Lara Bravo, 52; and Jose Alfonso Hernandez, 30, all Mexican citizens; and Raquel Dainese Phillips, 23; Dale Franklin Jones, 51; and Clarence Leroy Teel, 53, all of Houston. All previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to transport and harbor illegal aliens within the United States.

U.S. District Judge Gray H. Miller sentenced Lara-Reyes to 24 months in prison. Hernandez and Jones were ordered to serve 11 and four months, respectively. Bravo and Teel were each ordered to serve 12 months in federal prison. Phillips was sentenced to probation and will serve two years on home confinement. Jones and Teel will serve two and three-year-terms of supervised release, respectively, following completion of their prison terms. Lara-Reyes, Bravo and Hernandez are expected to face deportation proceedings upon their release from prison.

The case against these six began after HSI special agents obtained information during the investigation of an alien smuggling operation in the Corpus Christi area headed by Armando Olmedo-Trevino, 47, of Wharton, Texas. Lara-Reyes admitted he transported undocumented aliens from south Texas to the Houston area in order to further facilitate the aliens' movement into the United States at the request of Olmedo-Trevino. Lara-Reyes transported and harbored the undocumented aliens with the assistance of Bravo and Hernandez. Bravo and Hernandez watched over the aliens until smuggling fees were paid by the aliens' friends and family members.

Teel recruited and provided drivers to transport undocumented aliens on behalf of the alien smuggling organization. Teel admitted he began smuggling illegal aliens in 2008 and eventually graduated to recruiting drivers for the alien smuggling organization.

Additional evidence revealed that on multiple occasions, Phillips and Jones transported undocumented aliens for the alien smuggling organization. Phillips informed HSI special agents she was recruited to transport illegal aliens by Jeffery Mark Williams, 55, of Sugar Land, Texas.

On Sept. 7, Williams entered a guilty plea to conspiring to transport and harbor illegal aliens.

He is scheduled to be sentenced March 15, 2013, at which time he faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a possible $250,000 fine.

The case against Olmedo-Trevino was prosecuted in the Corpus Christi Division by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chad Cowan and Jeffrey Preston, Southern District of Texas. He received the statutory maximum of 120 months in prison.

The Houston case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. Menes and former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimani Eason, Southern District of Texas.

HSI Dismantles Human Smuggling Ring During Routine Traffic Stop

It began with a routine traffic stop in Tampa, Fla. On February 4, 2012, just after 5 p.m., Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office deputies pulled over 21-year-old Kathleen Roberson. Not only did she not have a valid driver's license, but she was also transporting five illegal aliens in her Kia Sorrento.

Roberson and one of her passengers, Jessica Roland, were transporters for a much larger human smuggling organization that operated out of Arizona and Alabama. The organization transported illegal aliens to final destinations throughout the United States.

The sheriff's office and the U.S. Border Patrol notified U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) about the incident. Two days later, HSI initiated an investigation to determine who Roberson and Roland were working for.

"When conducting these investigations, we look for the root of the problem. We were determined to dismantle the larger criminal organization behind the smuggling activity," said Sue McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa.

Further investigation led HSI to the organization's leadership, including brothers Jose Bartolo Calixto-Moran and Pedro Calixto-Moran, and Pedro's girlfriend Marilu Ramirez-Bartolo. The brothers and Ramirez-Bartolo were all Mexican citizens illegally residing in the United States.

"Human smugglers completely disregard the value of human lives. They transport people across the border like commodities, often in squalid conditions," said McCormick. "We estimate this organization was transporting nearly 80 illegal aliens each month from Phoenix to final destinations across the United States."

As a result of HSI's investigation, the court sentenced Pedro Calixto-Moran to 71 months in prison, Jose Calixto-Moran to 41 months in prison and Ramirez-Bartolo to 27 months in prison for their roles in the human smuggling organization. Roberto Jimenez-Delgado was also sentenced to 33 months in prison for transporting illegal aliens. Roberson and Roland cooperated with the investigation, and as a result, were sentenced to time served.

Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Alien Smuggling Scheme that Resulted in Fatality

A south Texas man pleaded guilty Wednesday, November 14, 2012, to alien smuggling and harboring that resulted in the death of a 24-year-old Mexican national in September 2011, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas.

The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Lewey Martinez, 31, of Falfurrias, pleaded guilty Nov. 14 to alien smuggling and harboring before Senior U.S. District Judge Janis Graham Jack. The government detailed that for five years, Martinez coordinated transporting aliens around the U.S. Border Patrol Checkpoint in Falfurrias. On the evening of Sept. 15, 2011, Martinez arranged for about 20 illegal aliens to hike around the checkpoint with the assistance of brush guides. After walking around the checkpoint, the aliens were driven to a stash house on Martinez's property.

Shortly after the group's arrival, two brush guides drove to the stash house with an additional alien who died from exposure and dehydration. Martinez and two others loaded the victim's body into a pickup truck and drove it to a public intersection. Martinez then called the emergency operator from a payphone and directed police to the body.

Following his arrest, Martinez admitted his role in the smuggling operation and his involvement in disposing the body.

Martinez faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced Jan. 25. He will remain in federal custody pending sentencing.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey D. Preston, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted the case.

Honduran National Sentenced for Hostage-Taking and Alien-Harboring

A Honduran national was sentenced Monday, November 5, 2012, to 35 years in federal prison following multiple convictions in a hostage-taking and alien-harboring conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas. The investigation was conducted by the Houston Police Department (HPD), and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Cesar Avila, 38, was sentenced Nov. 5 to 420 months in prison and ordered him to pay a $1,000 special assessment fee by U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal. Avila was convicted of hostage-taking conspiracy, four counts of hostage-taking, using a firearm during a crime of violence, and four counts of aiding and abetting the harboring of illegal aliens. Avila was convicted by a jury following a three day jury trial that concluded June 6.

Additional testimony was presented by one of two female victims who Avila sexually assaulted. She provided graphic testimony about how she was abused, and how that abuse has affected her. In handing down the sentence, Judge Rosenthal noted that Avila's statement that he had himself been a victim of smugglers was "chilling" in light of the evidence presented at trial. As an illegal alien, Avila is expected to face deportation proceedings after he completes his 35-year prison sentence.

Trial testimony showed that on Aug. 19, 2011, the Houston Emergency Center received a 911 call from a subject who spoke only Spanish. The victim advised he was being held against his will at a house in Houston by alien smugglers who had been hired to smuggle him to an unspecified location in the United States. He claimed Avila was armed with a handgun and had threatened them with death, and they were in fear of their lives.

HPD officers eventually located the residence on the 100 block of Jamaica Street in Houston. The location had no windows and the French doors on the north side of the residence had the glass panes covered with aluminum foil. Once inside the location, several people, who were later identified as hostages, began pointing to Avila as the hostage-taker and smuggler. Officers also discovered a semi-automatic handgun and a ledger detailing payments by the smuggling organization under the mattress where Avila was sitting.

Several of the aliens who were held hostage also identified Carlos Martinez-Aguilar, 44, an illegal alien from Mexico. They stated that Martinez-Aguilar came into the building where they were being held and drank beer with Avila in the hours prior to law enforcement arriving. They also stated that Martinez-Aguilar asked about the status of payments of smuggling fees. The victims indicated Martinez-Aguilar was not involved in abuse or threats, and he had provided them food and blankets. Officers discovered Martinez-Aguilar had been living in the larger house in front of the building where the aliens were housed.

One of the victims advised officers he had been in the Houston area for about eight days, and had been moved from house to house in the Houston area with five other aliens. He admitted he was in the country illegally and that he had paid smugglers $5,000 to smuggle him into the United States. He identified Avila as the subject who was holding him. He stated that Avila was constantly armed with the handgun, and had threatened to kill him if he tried to escape. Further testimony revealed that the smugglers were threatening to kill him if his family did not pay an additional $5,000.

The mother of one of the victims testified at trial that she and her family had been contacted by smugglers demanding more money and threatening her son's life, as well as the life of her family if the additional money was not paid. She was so frightened she contacted police who conducted surveillance to protect them. Her daughter also testified that the family raised money by borrowing it from friends, and they sent as much money as they could via wire transfer to smugglers in Mexico.

Avila will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Martinez-Aguilar was previously sentenced to 36 months in prison after previously pleading guilty to one count of harboring illegal aliens.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julie Searle and Douglas Davis, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted the case.

Mexican National Arrested for Attempt to Smuggle 17 Aliens in Cabin Cruiser

A Mexican man made his initial appearance in federal court Wednesday, September 19, 2012, on charges stemming from his alleged role in an effort to smuggle seven Mexican nationals into the United States from Mexico onboard a cabin cruiser that came ashore near San Clemente the morning of Monday, September 17, 2012. The incident remains under investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Jesus Quinones-Chavez, 57, of Turron, Cohuila, Mexico, is accused of bringing illegal aliens into the United States in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court-Central District of California.

Quinones' arrest occurred after a dispatcher at the California State Parks Service alerted U.S. Border Patrol agents in San Clemente the morning of Monday, September 17, 2012, that a vessel had run aground on the beach in the Cyprus Shore area of San Clemente. Border Patrol agents searched the area and discovered a beached 24-foot Bayliner cabin cruiser and apprehended seven people, including Quinones, who were soaking wet and covered in sand. An eighth individual eluded arrest. One man was later taken to a local hospital.

Investigators assigned to HSI's Los Angeles Border Enforcement Security Task Force responded to the scene and interviewed a local resident who had witnessed the boat come ashore. Additional interviews with the members of the smuggling load revealed they had each paid fees ranging from $7,000 to $12,000 to be smuggled from Puerto Nuevo, Baja California, to Newport Beach in the cabin cruiser, which allegedly was piloted by Quinones.

"Investigators are seeing an increase in the use of pleasure boats to smuggle humans and drugs into the United States," said Claude Arnold, special agent in charge of HSI Los Angeles. "Smugglers use the cabins on these boats to attempt to conceal people and contraband, unlike the open pangas that have traditionally been used in maritime smuggling attempts along the California coast. Law enforcement is alert to this new tactic and we encourage the public to be vigilant and report suspicious pleasure boat activity to authorities."

So far this fiscal year (Oct. 1, 2011, through Sept. 6, 2012), there have been more than 190 occurrences of maritime smuggling in Southern California. Of those, 112 were human smuggling events.

Maritime security efforts off the California coastline are being overseen by the Department of Homeland Security's Central California Maritime Agency Coordination Group. The group is comprised of HSI; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; the U.S. Coast Guard; and several state and local law enforcement agencies. The state and local partners include the California Highway Patrol; the California Department of Parks and Recreation; the sheriff's departments of Orange, Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties; and the Los Angeles and Long Beach police departments. The group is also receiving substantial assistance from members of the California National Guard's Counterdrug Program.

Couple Indicted for Human Trafficking, Alien Harboring

A Mexican couple was indicted Tuesday, May 15, for conspiring to harbor aliens and alien harboring, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas. The investigation is being led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with the assistance of U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Border Patrol.

Vicente Ortiz-Soto and Marcial Salas-Gardunio, both 23 and Mexican nationals, were indicted on charges of conspiracy to harbor aliens and alien harboring. The indictment returned May 15 alleges local law enforcement officers, working alongside federal authorities, were sent to a residence in Edinburg, Texas, May 2, after a 911 caller indicated he was being held against his will in an alien stash house.

According to court documents, upon arrival at the scene, authorities discovered more than 100 undocumented aliens of various countries of origin located in three separate buildings on the property. One building was chain-locked and several undocumented aliens who were locked inside the building were treated for injuries.

Statements taken from the undocumented aliens indicated they were allegedly threatened by Salas-Gardunio that they would be beaten or killed if they did not remain quiet. Additionally, witnesses indicated Salas-Gardunio stated "Welcome to Hell" when undocumented aliens arrived at the residence.

HSI arrested the couple May 2 without incident. Both will remain in federal custody without bond pending trial. A date for their arraignment on the formal charges alleged in the indictment will be set by the court in the near future.

If convicted, Ortiz-Soto and Salas-Gardunio could face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cory J. H. Crenshaw, Southern District of Texas, is prosecuting the case.

The public is reminded that an indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. The defendants are presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.