Former Border Patrol agent charged for hiring undocumented migrants as drivers 

A former Border Patrol (BP) agent was charged with hiring illegal aliens as drivers by fraudulently obtaining immigration permits, U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery announced on Thursday. 

Ricardo Gonzalez, 39, Natalia Gonzalez, 35, and Alex Lopez, 33, were arrested for their roles in the scheme, according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Texas. 

The three were responsible for the day-to-day operations of Gonmor Inc., a commercial trucking company in Laredo that hired undocumented migrants to work as commercial truck drivers and paid them lower wages due to their citizenship status. 

The indictment alleges that the three individuals knew that they were hiring illegal aliens that were not legally allowed to work in the United States. 

In addition, Gonzalez and his partners fraudulently forged paperwork so that the undocumented migrants could obtain an I-94 permit, which allowed them to travel further than 25 miles from the border and stay in the U.S. for more than 30 days. Usually, applicants must have another permit or a valid visa to obtain the I-94. 

Among the forged paperwork were letters from a fictitious Mexican trucking company stating that the migrants were employed by the company. The letter was presented by the undocumented migrants to authorities in the Laredo port of entry to apply for the permit. 

The indictment states that Gonzalez used his knowledge, training, and experience as a former Border Patrol agent to facilitate the employment of undocumented migrants. 

If convicted, Gonzalez, his wife, and his partner could face up to five years for the conspiracy to falsely obtain immigration permits and up to 10 years for the conspiracy to encourage an alien to remain in the U.S. illegally. 

They are expected to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Diana Song Quiroga this week.