Nicholas J. Ganjei United States Attorney for the Southern District of Texas | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas
A total of 202 cases related to immigration and border security were filed from May 30 to June 5, as announced by U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei. These cases include seven involving human smuggling, with 129 individuals charged with illegal entry into the United States and another 63 facing charges of felony reentry after prior removal. Many of these individuals have previous convictions for crimes such as narcotics offenses, violent crime, and other immigration-related crimes.
Among those charged is Luis Humberto Gonzalez-Sanchez, accused of harboring 16 illegal aliens in his home in Mercedes. Allegedly, he harbored over 100 aliens in the past six months for a fee of $150 each. If convicted, he could face up to ten years in prison.
Six Mexican nationals also face new charges after allegedly being found unlawfully in the Rio Grande Valley following previous convictions for illegal reentry into the United States. They are Oscar Vicente Perez-Lopez, Juan Manuel De La Cruz-Mejia, Jose Luis Tostado-Flores, Jesus Morales-Vargas, Jose Patricio Rios-Rojas, and Juan Manuel Alvarado-Gonzalez. Upon conviction, they could face up to 20 years in prison.
In addition to new cases, an illegal alien from El Salvador was sentenced for assaulting law enforcement during a traffic stop in November 2024 in Rio Grande City. Oscar Adilio Sanchez-Rivera attempted to evade arrest and injured a Border Patrol agent who required surgery. He will serve a 36-month prison sentence.
U.S. Attorney Ganjei commented on this case: “The defendant here managed to turn a simple removal case into a multi-year federal sentence... assaulting law enforcement will not be tolerated.”
Carlos Bedolla Sanchez was sentenced to 40 months for stealing a U.S. citizen’s identity since March 2009 to obtain various forms of identification.
In Corpus Christi, Armando Balladares-Prado was convicted after a jury trial for transporting illegal aliens hidden under the bed of his truck's sleeper compartment at a Border Patrol checkpoint near Falfurrias.
Manuel Capetillo and Michael Diaz received sentences of 85 months and 70 months respectively for their roles in an extensive human smuggling conspiracy operating stash houses in Laredo and Poteet.
Rolando Banda-Lucero was sentenced to 37 months for trafficking over $1 million worth of cocaine while being illegally present in the country.
Elger Fabricio Cotto-Navarro was sentenced after posing as an unaccompanied minor upon entering the country illegally; he now faces removal proceedings.
These cases were supported by federal agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF), along with state and local law enforcement partners.
The initiative is part of Operation Take Back America which aims to address illegal immigration issues by utilizing resources from Department of Justice's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).
Public safety remains a priority under current leadership within this district where enhanced enforcement efforts target unlawful activities including human trafficking sexual assault violence against children among others.
The Southern District of Texas represents one among busiest offices nationwide covering vast geographical area comprising multiple counties cities working closely alongside diverse law enforcement entities prosecuting suspected offenders federally across wide range criminal activities
It should be noted that indictments or criminal complaints serve merely formal accusations without constituting evidence; defendants maintain presumption innocence until proven guilty through due process legal system
