Authorities have arrested six Guatemalan smugglers involved in a 2021 semi-truck crash that killed more than 50 migrants and injured more than 100, the Justice Department announced this week.
This comes three years after a tragic accident in Chiapas, Mexico, in which scores of migrants, including children, were killed and seriously injured.
The four Guatemalan nationals are Thomas Kino Canil, 36; Alberto Marcario Sitic, 31 years old. Oswaldo Manuel Zavala Kino, 24 years old. and Josefa Kino Canil de Zavala, 42, were arrested by Guatemalan law enforcement and handed over to U.S. authorities.
Another smuggler, Jorge Agapito Ventura, 32, was taken into custody by U.S. law enforcement at his home in Cleveland, Texas. The name of the sixth smuggler was blacked out in Texas federal court documents.
According to Guatemala's Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez, the smugglers are part of a Guatemalan criminal organization called Los Quinos. All six people were charged in federal court in the Southern District of Texas in connection with the accident.
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On December 9, 2021, more than 50 migrants were killed in an accident in Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas, Mexico. (AP photo)
According to the indictment, all six smugglers conspired from October 2021 to February 2023 to facilitate the travel of migrants from Guatemala through Mexico, with destinations in the United States.
According to the indictment, smugglers recruited Guatemalan immigrants to enter the United States illegally, collected payments from them, and even told the children of the immigrants what to say if they were arrested by U.S. immigration authorities. He is said to have distributed a script written by him.
During the journey, smugglers moved the migrants on foot, in buses, cattle trucks, and trailers.
On December 9, 2021, more than 50 people were killed when migrants being transported in a trailer by smugglers crashed into a steel pedestrian bridge near the small town of Tuxtla Gutiérrez.
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Injured migrants are treated on the side of the road after an accident near Tuxtla Gutierrez, Mexico, on December 9, 2021. (AP photo)
Rescue workers found the crash site where migrants in a cargo trailer were thrown and crushed in a heap of the living and dead. The trailer was loaded with about 200 migrants.
In a statement released this week, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said, “Smugglers should heed these charges and arrests as a warning that they will be held accountable for their deadly crimes.” said.
“The Department of Justice is working to hold accountable those who we say are responsible for this heinous crime that preyed on vulnerable immigrants and left more than 50 people dead and more than 100 injured.” Garland said. “We will continue to work across government agencies and borders to stop the scourge of human smuggling.”
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A body was left on the side of the road after an accident in Tuxtla Gutierrez, Mexico, on December 9, 2021. (AP photo)
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“While this incident happened across borders, it is essential that the pursuit of justice transcends borders,” said U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani of the Southern District of Texas.
“Today, we reiterate our resolve to ensure that those allegedly responsible for exploiting the vulnerabilities of families seeking refuge and opportunity face the full force of the law. We will make a statement,” Hamdani said.
The six men are charged with conspiracy to bring illegal aliens into the United States to endanger the lives, cause serious bodily injury, and cause death. Punishments for these crimes include the death penalty or imprisonment for up to life.
