Dallas Human Smuggler Sentenced to 84 Months

A Dallas man has been sentenced to 84 months in prison for his role in a human smuggling organization that transported undocumented noncitizens from Laredo to San Antonio.

According to court documents, Sedrick Zelitis Smith, 47, was a key player in the organization, coordinating the transport of migrants who arrived in Laredo from Mexico. He served as the go-between for organization leadership and load drivers during smuggling events, and assisted in the theft and procurement of tractor trailers.

Smith, a commercial driver, used his license to smuggle migrants from Laredo to San Antonio on multiple occasions. His arrest was the result of an investigation led by Homeland Security Investigations beginning in May 2021. Agents discovered that the organization had smuggled more than 900 migrants from Laredo to San Antonio inside tractor trailers in at least 19 human smuggling events.

The loads ranged from approximately 30 migrants to more than 100 packed into a single trailer. Nine others have been indicted in the case, including Bryan Adamson, Ronnie Joe Branch, Eliseo Loredo, Rodney Edward Shavers, Mark Algie Holliday, Francisco Arredondo-Colmenero, and Debbie Marie Gonzales.

Fredi Zagala-Servin, another member of the organization, was sentenced in April to 97 months in prison for Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens. Norman Lee Walker Jr. was arrested May 21.

U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas praised the efforts of Homeland Security Investigations and the Joint Task Force Alpha initiative. “With the rise of human smuggling in recent years, it is absolutely critical that we send a message to criminals throughout all levels of these organizations that their crimes at the expense of vulnerable individuals are serious, they are dangerous, and we are here to readily prosecute,” he said.

Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee for HSI San Antonio added, “Justice was served for a human smuggler responsible for coordinating the transportation of hundreds of noncitizens from Laredo to San Antonio. These noncitizens were crammed into tractor trailers, during multiple smuggling events in the stifling Texas heat.”

The indictments and convictions of these defendants are the result of the coordinated efforts of Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), a joint initiative between the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Brown prosecuted the case, which highlights the ongoing efforts to combat human smuggling and protect vulnerable individuals along the southwest border.