A Texas man has been sentenced to more than 21 years in federal prison for conspiracy to transport noncitizens resulting in the death of three people.
Abraham J. Ahumada, 24, of Laredo, also must submit to five years of supervised release after serving the prison sentence imposed Feb. 10 by U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez, a news release said. Ahumada also must pay $4,077 in restitution.
“The deadly outcome in this case is heartbreaking and just one more example of how smugglers are driven by greed by placing personal profit ahead of public safety,” Homeland Security Investigations Acting Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee said in the release. “This defendant will spend more than 21 years in federal prison for his actions. Smuggling people is extremely dangerous for all involved, and HSI will continue to work aggressively to bring these criminals to justice.”
Ahumada pleaded guilty May 4, 2022, to the crime he reportedly laughed about and for which he showed no remorse, according to the release.
Ahumada drove a black Nissan Murano above 100 mph on U.S. Highway 83 in Texas Nov. 13, 2021, while fleeing law enforcement, the release said. A collision with another vehicle at an intersection caused the deaths of two people who were in Ahumada’s vehicle and an individual in the vehicle with which Ahumada’s vehicle collided.
“Three people are dead because of this human smuggler’s reckless behavior,” U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani said in the release. “Traveling over 100 miles per hour on a highly trafficked rural highway, his actions caused one victim to be ejected from the vehicle and another to be killed on impact — his body trapped inside the burning car. This man took three lives, ruined his own and will pay the price in federal prison for decades.”
Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Texas Department of Public Safety investigated the case, according to the release.
“HSI is the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats,” the release said. “HSI’s workforce of more than 8,700 employees consists of more than 6,000 special agents assigned to 237 cities throughout the United States and 93 overseas locations in 56 countries.”
