DETROIT _ After months of catching undocumented immigrants sneaking into the U.S. through an underground train tunnel, federal agents Wednesday arrested the man they say is responsible for the human smuggling operation that ran between Canada and Detroit.
Charged is Juan Antonio Garcia-Jimenez, 53, a naturalized Canadian resident from Guatemala who was arrested by Border Patrol agents and made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court Wednesday afternoon in Detroit. He was temporarily ordered detained.
According to the court documents, Garcia-Jimenez smuggled immigrants from Windsor, Ontario, into the U.S., charging each person $1,500 for driving them to the tunnel and instructing them on how to avoid getting caught. Federal agents started arresting some of these immigrants in March, records show, but took several months to catch the ringleader.
"Smuggling individuals through the train tunnel is one of the most dangerous methods I have seen in my career and I could not be more proud of the agents and officers who worked on identifying this individual and finally catching him," said Chief Patrol Agent Douglas Harrison of Border Patrol.
Added U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider: "Alien smuggling through this train tunnel is not just unlawful, it can be incredibly dangerous."
Garcia-Jimenez was charged in a criminal complaint, a charging document that explained what led to his arrest. Here, according to the complaint, is what happened:
Sometime in March, a Mexican worker paid Garcia-Jimenez to help him walk through the tunnel to enter the U.S. On March 18, Garcia-Jimenez drove that worker to the tunnel and instructed him on when to enter the tunnel to avoid the trains, which travel 1.6 miles underground in the tunnel to transport cargo between Detroit and Windsor
The worker got through safely, but was arrested by U.S. Border patrol agents on arrival in Detroit.
Four months later, border agents made a similar bust. On July 15, federal agents arrested two more individuals exiting the tunnel. They identified Garcia-Jimenez as the smuggler, to whom they each paid $1,500 to be smuggled into the U.S.
Two weeks later, two more immigrants showed up.
On July 30, border Border Patrol agents arrested two more individuals who had traveled through the underground railroad tunnel. They also identified Garcia-Jimenez as the smuggler, and said they each paid him $1,500 for his help sneaking through the tunnel.
Garcia-Jimenez has a bond hearing on Thursday, when a judge will decide whether to keep him locked up or release him on bond.
Garcia-Jimenez's lawyer could not readily be reached for comment.
