Immigration
Texas man charged for smuggling over 100 illegal immigrants into U.S.
He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted
April 20, 2022 6:04pm
Updated: April 21, 2022 11:08am
A Texas man was indicted on Tuesday for allegedly attempting to smuggle 107 illegal immigrants into the United States.
Daniel Chavez, 29, faces a two-count indictment from a federal grand jury.
Chavez, a resident of Elkhart, drove a tractor-trailer to a Border Patrol checkpoint on March 30, according to the complaint from the Department of Justice.
A K-9 allegedly alerted authorities to the vehicle during an inspection. Agents opened the trailer and found 107 undocumented aliens, the indictment stated.
The migrants came from Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala, Border Patrol told The Laredo Morning Times earlier this month.
A Guatemalan who was being held as a witness reportedly paid about $19,000 to be smuggled to New York.
Chavez told Homeland Security Investigations agents that he was offered $5,000 to smuggle the migrants through the border checkpoint.
He faces up to 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 if convicted.
