SAN LUIS POTOSÍ, Mexico.- A Cuban driver, resident in the city of Odessa, Texas, was arrested for transporting undocumented migrantsUS authorities announced.
A release An investigation released Monday by U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani said Mario Enrique Nerey-Valdivia, 50, drove a tractor-trailer to the Falfurrias Border Patrol checkpoint, just outside the southern border.
During an immigration inspection, officers noticed an individual attempting to hide in the bed compartment of the vehicle.
Later, during a thorough search, authorities discovered five undocumented people on the bunks, covered with blankets.
In a one-day trial, the defendant explained that he had no knowledge of the individuals inside the cab of his truck. However, doubting his claims, he was found guilty of the charges against him.
U.S. District Judge David S. Morales set sentencing for the Cuban for Nov. 6. Nerey-Valdivia could face up to five years in federal prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
Migrants across the border
In the context of the current migration crisisCuban migrants seek to reach the border with the United States by any means, exposing themselves to kidnappingsextortions and transfers in conditions of overcrowding.
A federal jury in Corpus Christi, Texas, found a 38-year-old Cuban guilty earlier this year of drug trafficking. migrants towards the United States within its truck.
The guilty verdict determined that Illeysel Carcasses transported five undocumented in the rear of your vehicle.
According to advertisement U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani said in a statement that the jury deliberated for about 90 minutes before convicting Carcasses after a two-day trial involving 10 witnesses.
The report of the events states that Carcasses drove a refrigerated truck to the checkpoint of the Border Patrol from Sarita, Texas.
Following an initial inspection, officers discovered five undocumented individuals concealed in the rear of the vehicle, hidden among rotten produce.
In the prosecution’s statement they said that the individuals were locked inside with no chance of escape. The Cuban denied having any keys to open the truck’s trunk. However, the authorities found them in the truck’s cabin.
A review of his phone also showed that his previous location coincided with the place where the undocumented immigrants were placed in the vehicle.
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