Texas law enforcement officials have indicted seven suspects on human trafficking and organized crime-related charges after discovering a safe house with 26 victims on Thursday.
Last Thursday, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies busted a human trafficking operation using a long goose-neck trailer headed to a rural home, described by authorities as an open-air shed, outside San Antonio.
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said the trailer came from the Laredo area and had a large fake loading bay underneath it with 26 migrants lying inside.
The suspects were identified as 39-year-old Abeldaro Herrera, 26-year-old Rafael Mendoza, 28-year-old Cristobal Eduardo Deleon, 21-year-old Jose Marvin Hernandez, 23-year-old Mario Enrique Elizondo, 30-year-old Vanessa Castillo and 45-year-old Ismael Hernandez.
Texas law enforcement busts human trafficking operation involving dozens of migrants: ‘Cartel-related’
The Bexar County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office has identified seven suspects who were arrested after a human trafficking case was uncovered on June 6, 2024. Pictured, from left, are Abelardo Herrera, Rafael Mendoza and Cristobal Eduardo Deleon. (Bexar County Sheriff’s Office)
Herrera, Mendoza and Deleon were indicted on 26 counts of human trafficking and, along with Elizondo, Castillo and Hernandez, were also charged with engaging in organized criminal activity.
Hernandez has not been charged with either crime, but only with evading arrest.
The sheriff’s office said the 26 victims were taken to safety and given medical treatment.
Biden has been criticized within his party for using the same tactics as Trump to control the border.
The Bexar County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office has identified seven suspects who were arrested after a human trafficking case was uncovered on June 6, 2024. Pictured from left are Jose Marvin Hernandez, Mario Enrique Elizondo, Vanessa Castillo and Ismael Hernandez. (Bexar County Sheriff’s Office)
Twelve of the 26 victims were taken to University Hospital and treated for minor injuries and heat stroke.
One migrant remains hospitalized for further treatment for dehydration and heart-related problems.
The victims were 20 men and six women, aged between 18 and 54.
They all came from Mexico, Honduras, Venezuela and Guatemala, authorities said.
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A Bexar County sheriff’s deputy, right, talks with a handcuffed woman during a law enforcement sting operation, Thursday, June 6, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office impounded several vehicles driven by the suspects that were on the premises.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) told Fox News that Homeland Security Investigations is assisting the sheriff’s office in the investigation.
When asked whether the suspect was in the U.S. illegally, ICE declined to comment on the case.
The sheriff’s office received information Thursday morning that a human trafficking operation was underway involving dozens of people.
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A Bexar County sheriff’s deputy, left, talks with a handcuffed woman during a law enforcement sting operation, Thursday, June 6, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
Acting on the call, the sheriff’s office and multiple other law enforcement agencies tracked the trailer to what Salazar described as “a shack outside with the windows open in triple-digit temperatures” that had no air conditioning, no running water and a bucket toilet.
Investigators said they also found multiple bulletproof vests and a long rifle behind the residence.
Salazar told reporters he did not know whether the rifles were automatic or semi-automatic, adding that guns and vests are a “natural find” in smuggling rings like the one his team busted, which he said was “clearly cartel-related.”
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The sheriff described the smuggling operation as “big money” and said a Guatemalan woman in the group told authorities she paid $16,000 to smuggle the drugs into the United States.
