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Alien Smugglers Crash, Land in Jail
Rudin Lopez-Lopez, 20, and Jose Hernandez-Lopez, 20, both citizens of Guatemala residing in Providence, Rhode Island, were arrested Wednesday after a high-speed crash on New York State Route 11 near Ellenburg, New York. The two men are charged with alien smuggling following the crash, which left no one injured.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Robert N. Garcia, Acting Chief Patrol Agent, United States Border Patrol, Swanton Sector.
Early Wednesday morning, Border Patrol agents assigned to the Burke and Champlain Stations arrested Lopez-Lopez and Hernandez-Lopez, along with five Romanians, after a failed smuggling attempt. The charges in the complaints are merely accusations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
According to the criminal complaints, a Border Patrol Agent pulled over a Texas-plated sedan that was observed along the border at the same time that several people were suspected of illegally crossing the border. The car initially yielded to the Border Patrol Agent and pulled over, but as the Agent attempted to speak with the occupants of the car, it sped off east on New York State Route 11 at a high rate of speed.
Agents lost contact with the vehicle but came upon it when the damaged car was found embedded in a guardrail at the intersection of State Routes 11 and 190. All seven occupants of the car had fled. An immediate search of the area revealed two people hiding under a nearby bridge. Agents found three more people in a wooded area. Agents determined all were illegal aliens.
Lopez-Lopez and Hernandez-Lopez are each charged with transporting aliens unlawfully present in the United States for the purpose of commercial advantage and private financial gain. Each appeared today before United States Magistrate Judge Gary L. Favro and was detained pending a detention hearing scheduled for August 28. The charges filed against Lopez-Lopez and Hernandez-Lopez carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Human Trafficking|Organized Crime|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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