Fort Myers, Florida - United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury found Yohany Hernandez-Hernandez (36, West Palm Beach) guilty of illegally transporting undocumented aliens. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 20, 2016.
Hernandez-Hernandez was indicted on May 13, 2015.
According to evidence presented at trial, on May 7, 2015, Hernandez-Hernandez was stopped by deputies from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office for committing a traffic infraction on I-75. During the traffic stop, the deputies became aware that he was transporting six undocumented aliens. Law enforcement later learned that Hernandez-Hernandez and the undocumented aliens had travelled from a safe house in Houston to Lee County. They had driven for approximately 22 hours, with limited stops, in an attempt to avoid being detected by immigration officials. The investigation further revealed that two other undocumented aliens had previously been dropped off in other parts of Florida. The aliens had been transported to further their stay in the United States and for Hernandez-Hernandez’s financial gain.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael C. Baggé-Hernández.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
