A 21-year old Texas man has been sentenced to more than five years in prison after pleading guilty to smuggling over 100 migrants into the U.S.
The man in question is Juan Francisco Reyna, 21. He pleaded guilty in January to conspiring to transport and harbor migrants within the country.
As a result, U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison sentenced Reyna to 63 months in federal prison plus one year of supervised release. The sentence added more time for bringing children, reckless endangerment and being a "leader/organizer in the conspiracy," according to U.S. Attorney Nicholas Ganjei.
Border Report detailed that Reyna was involved in smuggling operations for at least five years and that between 2019 and 2023 he was repeatedly caught trying to move people through a checkpoint north of Laredo. He was also linked to stash houses in Laredo and San Antonio.
The outlet added that he recruited and paid other people to harbor and transport migrants across the U.S., taking them to states like Oklahoma, Arkansas, Georgia and Florida. They were moved in tractor-trailers, box trucks, trains and horse trailers.
Earlier this month, another Texas man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a human smuggling scheme. Concretely, Enil Edil Mejia Zuniga was sentenced for his role in a smuggling ring that spanned three continents.
Also known as "Chino," Mejia Zuniga worked with a Pakistani smuggler based in Brazil who brought in people from South America and Central and South Asia. They were then taken to Mexico and smuggled into the U.S: through Eagle Pass, Texas.
Clients paid between $6,500 and $12,000 each, and Mejia Zuniga got some $3,000 for every person who made it across the border and $3,000 more for those who got to San Antonio, according to federal officials.
The ring also was accused of supervising homes in Monterrey and Piedras Negras, in Mexico, where migrants were kept while waiting to be smuggled.
Mejia Zuniga entered a plea agreement in 2023 after being confronted with witness testimonies, wire transfer records, client ledgers and photos.
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas Justin R. Simmons. said that "in an effort to satisfy his greed, Mejia Zuniga facilitated the illegal movement of thousands of Middle Easterners into the United States."
"His actions put our national security at risk. However, thanks to our many federal law enforcement partners, Mejia-Zuniga will no longer be allowed to enrich himself to the detriment of this country," Simmons added.
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