AREQUIPA, Peru – Some three Cubans have been arrested and prosecuted in Houston, Texas, for their alleged activities in a criminal gang dedicated to car theft at various airports in the United States.
A portal report Strong Coffee points out that the authorities have identified the criminal network as the Cuban Auto Theft Group (CATG), made up of a group of Cubans residing in Houston and under investigation since last February 2023.
The arrests, made in October of this year, include the ringleader of the gang, Yoel Hernández Frómeta, 38; José Antonio Pérez Rodríguez, 29; and Yainier Pinillo Toro, 30.
The trio of defendants were transferred to the Tarrant County Jail and currently face charges of participation in organized crime, theft of property greater than $300,000 and illegal use or possession of criminal instruments with the intent to commit robbery.
At least 14 other individuals have been processed as suspects and members of the gang. The information indicates that the CATG would be behind the theft of millions of dollars in vehicles at airports in Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah.
The search warrants of the case presented in court indicate that in the international terminal of Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), Texas alone, the group stole some 52 cars, which represents a loss of $4,938,771.
The modus operandi of the CAGT, referred to in the court documents, indicates that the Cubans stole the cars and changed the identification numbers, also illegally renaming them for sale within the United States.
Likewise, it was learned that the criminal network used to move some of the vehicles across the southern US border to sell them in Mexico.
Cubans in Texas
In addition to Florida, the State of Texas is emerging as one of the main settlements of Cuban migrants within the United States, where at least 34,000 reside in the urban area of Houston, according to official figures.
Last August, a Cuban driver, resident in the city of Odessa, was also detained for transport undocumented migrantsas announced by US authorities.
A release issued by U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani notes that Mario Enrique Nerey-Valdivia, 50, drove a tractor-trailer to the Falfurrias Border Patrol checkpoint, just short of the southern border.
During an immigration inspection, officers noticed an individual attempting to hide in the bed compartment of the vehicle.
Later, in a thorough search, authorities discovered five undocumented people in the bunk beds, covered with blankets.
In a day-long trial, the defendant explained that he had no knowledge of the individuals inside the cab of his truck. However, doubting his allegations, they found him guilty of the charges against him.
District Judge David S. Morales set the Cuban’s sentencing for November 6. Nerey-Valdivia could face up to five years in federal prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
