Latest news with #FelipeOrduna-Torres
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Yahoo
2 American women arrested at border for smuggling unaccompanied minors: CBP
Two American citizens were arrested by El Centro Sector Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents earlier this week, according to that agency. A female driver and passenger, both unnamed, were transporting two girls, ages 10 and 12, when they approached the Highway 86 immigration checkpoint near Westmorland, California. CBP said the driver initially claimed she was driving from Arizona to California but later admitted that she had crossed the U.S. southern border with Mexico at the San Luis Port of Entry in Arizona earlier in the day. The vehicle was then referred for secondary inspection. Northern Border 'Quiet Crises' Brews As Expert Floats Unconventional Solution To Combat Human Smuggling During that inspection process, agents noticed that the children's names and photos did not match those on their identification cards and discovered that they were not related to the driver or passenger. After questioning, they discovered that the children were unaccompanied minors from Mexico. "And this, folks, is how the trafficking of children starts," said Chief Patrol Agent Gregory K. Bovino of the El Centro Sector. "It's almost unbearable to think about what heinous crimes await children who aren't with their parents. The border environment has been rife with this type of activity over the past several years. However, the focus has now shifted, and heavy sentences await smugglers who hurt kids." Read On The Fox News App Both adults were charged under 8 U.S.C. § 1324, which prohibits smuggling and transporting immigrants into the United States. Fox News Digital reached out to CBP's El Centro Sector. Us Northern Border Sees Romanian Illegal Immigrant Influx As Expert Predicts What Could Be Driving Them Just last month, two Mexican nationals were found guilty in what was described as the "deadliest human smuggling event in U.S. history." Felipe Orduna-Torres and Armando Gonzales-Ortega face life in prison after abandoning a tractor trailer filled with illegal immigrants in the baking San Antonio sun in 2022. Sixty-seven illegal immigrants, including children, were locked inside. The incident resulted in the death of 53 people. Ritzy Florida Enclave Becomes Chinese Smuggling Hot Spot As Former Military Identifies Driving Force Earlier in the month of March, Eduardo Domingo Renoj-Matul and Cristobal Mejia-Chaj, both Guatemalan nationals, were arrested by federal agents and accused of operating one of the largest human smuggling rings in the country. The pair allegedly smuggled 20,000 illegal immigrants into the United States from 2019 until their article source: 2 American women arrested at border for smuggling unaccompanied minors: CBP
Fox News
11-04-2025
- Fox News
2 American women arrested at border for smuggling unaccompanied minors: CBP
Two American citizens were arrested by El Centro Sector Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents earlier this week, according to that agency. A female driver and passenger, both unnamed, were transporting two girls, ages 10 and 12, when they approached the Highway 86 immigration checkpoint near Westmorland, California. CBP said the driver initially claimed she was driving from Arizona to California but later admitted that she had crossed the U.S. southern border with Mexico at the San Luis Port of Entry in Arizona earlier in the day. The vehicle was then referred for secondary inspection. During that inspection process, agents noticed that the children's names and photos did not match those on their identification cards and discovered that they were not related to the driver or passenger. After questioning, they discovered that the children were unaccompanied minors from Mexico. "And this, folks, is how the trafficking of children starts," said Chief Patrol Agent Gregory K. Bovino of the El Centro Sector. "It's almost unbearable to think about what heinous crimes await children who aren't with their parents. The border environment has been rife with this type of activity over the past several years. However, the focus has now shifted, and heavy sentences await smugglers who hurt kids." Both adults were charged under 8 U.S.C. § 1324, which prohibits smuggling and transporting immigrants into the United States. Fox News Digital reached out to CBP's El Centro Sector. Just last month, two Mexican nationals were found guilty in what was described as the "deadliest human smuggling event in U.S. history." Felipe Orduna-Torres and Armando Gonzales-Ortega face life in prison after abandoning a tractor trailer filled with illegal immigrants in the baking San Antonio sun in 2022. Sixty-seven illegal immigrants, including children, were locked inside. The incident resulted in the death of 53 people. Earlier in the month of March, Eduardo Domingo Renoj-Matul and Cristobal Mejia-Chaj, both Guatemalan nationals, were arrested by federal agents and accused of operating one of the largest human smuggling rings in the country. The pair allegedly smuggled 20,000 illegal immigrants into the United States from 2019 until their arrests.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Yahoo
Two men convicted in 2022 smuggling conspiracy that killed 53 migrants
March 19 (UPI) -- A federal jury has convicted two men for their involvement in the fatal smuggling scheme that led to the deaths of 53 migrants in the back of a sweltering tractor-trailer in 2022. Federal prosecutors said Felipe Orduna-Torres, 30, and Armando Gonzalez-Ortega, 55, were convicted Tuesday, each on three counts related to the smuggling scheme, and face a maximum penalty of life in prison when sentenced on June 27. The pair were arrested in June 2023, almost a year to the day after dozens of migrants were found dead in the back of a tractor-trailer abandoned on the side of a San Antonio road on June 27, 2022. Sixty-six migrants were in the back of the trailer without water or functioning air conditioning as they were driven for hours across the state of Texas. Forty-eight of the migrants were pronounced dead at the scene, while five people who were transported to area hospitals later died. Six children and a pregnant woman were among the deceased. According to federal prosecutors, the migrant families paid the defendants and their co-conspirators between $12,000 and $15,000 to be smuggled into the United States. Coinciding with the convictions, a third defendant, Rigoberto Ramon Miranda-Orozco, 48, was extradited to the United States from Guatemala to face charges in connection with the conspiracy. Federal prosecutors accused Miranda-Orozco of being a leader of a Guatemala-based smuggling organization. He made his first appearance in a San Antonio federal court on Monday. Guatemalan authorities arrested him in August at the request of the United States in a large law enforcement operation carried out across the Central American country. "The extradition of Miranda-Orozco to U.S. custody is a major step in the takedown of a large and complex human smuggling organization he is alleged to be a part of," acting U.S. Attorney Margaret Leachman for the Western District of Texas said in a statement. "Just as we've shown throughout the trial of Orduna-Torres and Gonzalez-Ortega, we will continue to prosecute this case aggressively -- seeking justice for those who have perished and holding accountable those who illegally value profit over human life." Five other defendants have pleaded guilty to their involvement in the case.
CNN
19-03-2025
- CNN
Jury convicts two men in smuggling operation that killed 53 migrants
Two men involved in a smuggling operation were convicted of federal charges Tuesday for their part in a 2022 border crossing attempt that left 53 migrants dead after they were trapped in the back of of an unairconditioned tractor trailer in the hot Texas summer. Felipe Orduna-Torres, 30, and Armando Gonzalez-Ortega, 55, were convicted of several charges, including conspiracy to transport undocumented immigrants resulting in death. They both face of life in prison when they are sentenced in June. The June 2022 disaster was one of the deadliest smuggling attempts in American history. The migrants, who came from Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras, were charged between $12,000 to $15,000 each to embark on the journey, which ended in San Antonio, Texas. 'These defendants knew the air conditioning did not work,' Margaret Leachman, the acting US attorney for the Western District of Texas, said at a press conference after the verdict. 'Nevertheless, they disregarded the danger.' Orduna-Torres was the 'lead organizer' of the smuggling group, she said, and Gonzales-Ortega was his 'right-hand man.' Prosecutors alleged that Orduna-Torres and Gonzalez-Ortega were part of the smuggling organization that loaded 66 migrants into the truck and drove from the border town of Laredo, Texas, to San Antonio. The temperature during the three-hour ride was sweltering, prosecutors said at trial, and migrants inside the tractor-trailer began scratching at its walls trying to escape. Others lost consciousness. When the doors of the tractor-trailer were opened in San Antonio, 48 migrants had died inside, the Justice Department said, and another five died at the hospital. Six children and a pregnant woman were among the dead. Five other men previously pleaded guilty to charges connecting to the smuggling case, including the driver of the tractor-trailer. The Justice Department also announced that another man, Rigoberto Miranda-Orozco, was extradited from Guatemala to face charges for his alleged role in the mass casualty event. Prosecutors allege that Miranda-Orozco charged several migrants, or their friends and family, for the journey – three of whom died in the tractor-trailer. He is facing six federal charges and has not yet entered a formal plea. Matthew Galeotti, who leads the Justice Department's criminal division, said in a statement Tuesday that the extradition 'sends the message that the Department of Justice will pursue human smugglers who violate U.S. law no matter where they are.' This story has been updated with additional details.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Yahoo
Jury convicts two men in smuggling operation that killed 53 migrants
Two men involved in a smuggling operation were convicted of federal charges Tuesday for their part in a 2022 border crossing attempt that left 53 migrants dead after they were trapped in the back of of an unairconditioned tractor trailer in the hot Texas summer. Felipe Orduna-Torres, 30, and Armando Gonzalez-Ortega, 55, were convicted of several charges, including conspiracy to transport undocumented immigrants resulting in death. They both face of life in prison when they are sentenced in June. The June 2022 disaster was one of the deadliest smuggling attempts in American history. The migrants, who came from Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras, were charged between $12,000 to $15,000 each to embark on the journey, which ended in San Antonio, Texas. 'These defendants knew the air conditioning did not work,' Margaret Leachman, the acting US attorney for the Western District of Texas, said at a press conference after the verdict. 'Nevertheless, they disregarded the danger.' Orduna-Torres was the 'lead organizer' of the smuggling group, she said, and Gonzales-Ortega was his 'right-hand man.' Prosecutors alleged that Orduna-Torres and Gonzalez-Ortega were part of the smuggling organization that loaded 66 migrants into the truck and drove from the border town of Laredo, Texas, to San Antonio. The temperature during the three-hour ride was sweltering, prosecutors said at trial, and migrants inside the tractor-trailer began scratching at its walls trying to escape. Others lost consciousness. When the doors of the tractor-trailer were opened in San Antonio, 48 migrants had died inside, the Justice Department said, and another five died at the hospital. Six children and a pregnant woman were among the dead. Five other men previously pleaded guilty to charges connecting to the smuggling case, including the driver of the tractor-trailer. The Justice Department also announced that another man, Rigoberto Miranda-Orozco, was extradited from Guatemala to face charges for his alleged role in the mass casualty event. Prosecutors allege that Miranda-Orozco charged several migrants, or their friends and family, for the journey – three of whom died in the tractor-trailer. He is facing six federal charges and has not yet entered a formal plea. Matthew Galeotti, who leads the Justice Department's criminal division, said in a statement Tuesday that the extradition 'sends the message that the Department of Justice will pursue human smugglers who violate U.S. law no matter where they are.' This story has been updated with additional details.
