On Wednesday, extensive coordination and collaboration between the Justice Department and its domestic and international partners resulted in a major enforcement operation that dismantled a human smuggling network based in Guatemala.
In June 2022, this network smuggled people into the United States on a journey that ended with the deaths of 53 migrants in a tractor-trailer in San Antonio, Texas. Twenty-one of the deceased migrants were Guatemalan. This case is part of Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), created by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in June 2021, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security to strengthen U.S. enforcement efforts against human smuggling emanating from Central America.
On August 21, Guatemalan law enforcement executed multiple search and arrest warrants across Guatemala, working together with United States law enforcement agents. At the request of the United States, Guatemalan authorities arrested Guatemalan national Rigoberto Ramon Miranda-Orozco, who has been indicted in the Western District of Texas in connection with the investigation. Six individuals arrested as part of the operation will be charged locally in Guatemala.
Miranda-Orozco, 47, whose indictment was unsealed Wednesday, allegedly conspired with other smugglers to facilitate the travel of four migrants from Guatemala through Mexico and, ultimately, to the United States. He allegedly charged the migrants, or their families and friends, approximately $12,000 to $15,000 for the journey. The indictment alleges that three of these migrants perished in the tractor-trailer, and the fourth suffered serious bodily injury.
Miranda-Orozco is charged with six counts related to migrant smuggling resulting in death or serious bodily injury. He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
“Over the past two years, the Justice Department has worked methodically to hold accountable those responsible for the horrific tragedy in San Antonio that killed 53 people who had been preyed on by human smugglers,” said Attorney General Garland. “With these arrests, the Justice Department and our partners in Guatemala have now arrested a total of 14 people for their alleged involvement in this tragedy.”
“Smugglers prey on migrants and seek profits with complete disregard for human life, as we saw in this tragic incident that killed 53 people,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas.
“Today’s arrests in Guatemala are a continued fulfillment of that pledge. We will not rest in our efforts to disrupt the smuggling networks that capitalize on desperation and foster misery throughout the Western Hemisphere.”
“As alleged in the indictment, Miranda-Orozco recruited some of the migrants who died in the back of a tractor-trailer near San Antonio, Texas, in June 2022, and worked with a network of smugglers to transport them from Guatemala through Mexico into the United States,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas said, “This significant development in the case demonstrates the commitment of this office, the Department of Justice, and our partners at all necessary levels, to ensure all 53 migrants who died in the 2022 tractor-trailer tragedy get their justice.”
The human smuggling organization allegedly loaded 65 migrants into a tractor-trailer, which court documents allege lacked functioning air conditioning as it drove north on a Texas interstate. As temperatures rose, some of the migrants inside the trailer allegedly lost consciousness while others clawed at the walls, trying to escape.
By the time the tractor-trailer reached San Antonio, the indictment alleges, 48 migrants had already died. Another five migrants died after being transported to local hospitals. Six children and a pregnant woman were among the deceased.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas has previously charged seven other defendants for their alleged involvement in this smuggling event, including through indictments filed in 2022 and 2023. Four of these seven defendants have pleaded guilty.
The indictment against Miranda-Orozco and the cooperation between U.S. and Guatemalan authorities were spearheaded by JTFA and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.
Given the rise in prolific and dangerous smuggling emanating from Central America with effects in the United States, JTFA’s goal is to disrupt and dismantle human smuggling and trafficking networks operating in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Colombia, and Panama with a focus on networks that endanger, abuse or exploit migrants, present national security risks, or engage in other types of transnational organized crime.
“An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law,” said the U.S. Justice Department.
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