Alamdar Hamdani U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas
Two U.S. citizens have been sentenced to federal prison for attempting to smuggle a 7-year-old Mexican child into the United States, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Naidelyn Yuliana Vielma Jimenez, 22, from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico, and Bianca Jackeline Vielma Jimenez, 23, from Laredo, pleaded guilty in September and October of 2024. U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña sentenced both sisters to 36 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
The incident occurred on July 9, 2024, when the women arrived at the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge in Laredo with their 16-year-old sister and a young boy. They claimed the boy was their 15-year-old brother and presented a video and photograph as evidence along with documents belonging to their actual brother.
Authorities were skeptical about the boy's identity as he appeared much younger than claimed. Further investigation confirmed that he was not related to the women.
The sisters later confessed they had agreed to smuggle the child into the United States and transport him to San Antonio for $3,000.
“Prior open border policies have inflicted an incalculable human toll, much of which has unfortunately fallen upon innocent children,” stated Ganjei. “The Department of Justice, and particularly the Southern District of Texas, will do whatever it takes to destroy the market for trafficking and smuggling children. For those who profit off this misery, you will be found and prosecuted.”
Both women are allowed to remain on bond until they surrender voluntarily to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility that will be designated soon.
The investigation was conducted by Customs and Border Protection with Assistant U.S. Attorney Jose Homero Ramirez prosecuting the case.
