Federal authorities in the Southern District of Texas have filed 303 cases related to immigration and border security from September 5 to 11, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Of those charged, 126 individuals are accused of reentering the United States illegally after removal, with most having felony convictions for crimes such as narcotics offenses, violent acts, sexual offenses, and prior immigration violations. Another 162 people face charges of illegal entry, while 14 are allegedly involved in human smuggling. Four others are charged with firearms offenses and other immigration-related crimes.
Several defendants charged with felony reentry had been removed from the country earlier this summer. One case involves Luis Pablo Estolano-Velasquez, a Mexican national previously convicted of capital murder of multiple persons who was removed in June but was allegedly found near Pharr this week without legal status.
Other complaints allege that Mexican nationals Adan Jaimes-Gomez and Jose Alvarado-Aguirre were removed on June 23 and August 21 respectively, while Honduran nationals Franklin Geovanny Escobar-Matias and Jose Mauricio Garcia-Martinez were removed on July 27 and August 1. All reportedly have prior convictions including illegal reentry, robbery, or drug-related offenses.
Authorities also reported finding Mexican nationals Juan Gerardo Garcia-Torres and Juan Manuel Zamudio-Villasenor along with Honduran national Cesar Ernesto Amendola-Hernandez in the Rio Grande Valley without legal permission to be in the United States; all have previous convictions for illegal reentry.
If convicted, these individuals could face up to 20 years in prison.
A separate indictment concerns a 33-year-old Mexican national accused of illegal reentry following his second alleged DWI incident and a fatal crash. Authorities say Eduardo Balderas-Zuniga was arrested for DWI in Harris County on May 11, removed from the country, then allegedly returned illegally before being arrested again after another drunk driving incident resulting in a civilian’s death.
Eight MS-13 gang members—all El Salvadorian citizens living illegally in Houston—pleaded guilty to racketeering charges involving multiple murders and witness tampering. According to prosecutors, they used machetes, a baseball bat, and strangulation methods to expand their gang’s influence. The plea agreements will see three serve fifty years each in federal prison; others face sentences ranging from thirty-five to fifty years.
“This case demonstrates the tremendous public safety threat that MS-13 and other criminal terrorist organizations pose to American communities,” said Ganjei. “Here, defendants carried out a series of murders - bludgeoning, butchering, and strangling their victims with sadistic glee. These are people without remorse or pity. When it comes to eradicating these gangs, the United States cannot afford to either relent or fail. As the facts of this case show, the stakes are too high.”
In Brownsville court proceedings, Jorge Huerta-Garcia—a Mexican citizen residing illegally near Weslaco—was sentenced to over seventeen years after his conviction for illegal reentry following removal as well as conspiracy involving more than five kilograms of cocaine and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Law enforcement linked him to an incident involving nearly forty kilograms of cocaine during an investigation into drug trafficking activity.
Raul Angel Serna Buentello—a Mexican national identified as a Tango Blast gang member—received an eight-year sentence for illegal reentry into the country; twenty-four months were added due to violation of supervised release terms from an earlier conviction for the same offense. The court heard about his criminal history dating back to age fourteen including burglaries/thefts of vehicles and firearm possession violations.
Also announced was Lazaro Rosendo Vega—a sixty-two-year-old Alamo resident—who pleaded guilty after transporting two Mexican citizens hidden under blankets atop a tractor-trailer’s sleeper cab bunk at Falfurrias Border Patrol checkpoint; he faces up to five years imprisonment plus a possible $250,000 fine.
Another case involved a La Villa resident sentenced by Corpus Christi federal court to just under four years for conspiring to transport twenty-seven undocumented immigrants—including two minors—in refrigerated conditions set at approximately fifty degrees Fahrenheit inside produce pallets. The defendant had prior convictions for bulk cash smuggling and alien transportation while on supervised release at time of arrest.
These cases resulted from cooperation among federal agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) - Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), ICE - Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), Border Patrol, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), FBI, U.S. Marshals Service and Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms & Explosives (ATF), alongside state/local law enforcement partners.
The prosecutions fall under Operation Take Back America—a nationwide Department of Justice initiative aimed at countering illegal immigration activities as well as eliminating cartels/transnational criminal organizations through coordinated efforts utilizing resources like Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods programs: https://www.justice.gov/ocdetf/about-ocdetf
According to district leadership statements included in the announcement: public safety measures—including enhanced enforcement both at border points and within district interiors—remain top priorities yielding arrests involving unlawful activity or serious criminal histories such as human trafficking or violence against children.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District covers forty-three counties across more than forty-four thousand square miles serving over nine million residents via seven divisions: Houston Galveston Victoria Corpus Christi Brownsville McAllen Laredo—all working closely with law enforcement partners across government levels on prosecution efforts.
Officials emphasized that indictments/criminal complaints represent formal accusations—not evidence—and all defendants remain presumed innocent unless proven guilty through due process.
