A former soldier stationed at Ft. Hood in Texas has been sentenced to 12 months and one day in federal prison for alien smuggling charges.
Christopher David Wix, 21, of Abilene, was handed down the sentence by U.S. District Judge Hilda Tagle, who noted Wix’s youthful age and relatively low rank within the smuggling conspiracy as factors in the sentence.
Wix, who was a former active duty U.S. Army soldier, entered a plea to conspiracy to transport and harbor undocumented aliens on October 30, 2014. He is also scheduled to serve two years of supervised release after completing his prison sentence.
The investigation, led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with the assistance of Customs and Border Protection (CBP), revealed that Wix was part of a smuggling ring that used the immigration checkpoint at Sarita to bring undocumented individuals into the country.
On September 11, 2014, Wix arrived at the checkpoint driving a car registered to Eric Alexander Rodriguez, 20, of Odem, and presented his military identification. A routine check of the vehicle revealed two undocumented individuals hiding under his military gear.
Further investigation revealed that Wix had attempted to use his military identification to facilitate his passage through the immigration checkpoint. Wix’s co-conspirators, including Rodriguez, Brandon Troy Robbins, 20, from San Antonio, and Arnoldo Gracia, 45, of Harlingen, have also entered guilty pleas and are scheduled for sentencing on August 4, 2015.
HSI conducted the investigation with the assistance of CBP, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Oscar Ponce is prosecuting the case. Wix was permitted to remain on bond and is scheduled to surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility in the near future.
Related Federal Cases
- Mexican National Gets 10 Years for Deadly Alien Smuggling Role · New Mexico
- Army Soldiers Nava, Cleveland Charged in Alien Smuggling · Texas
- Santana, Vasquez-Ramirez Lead Alien Smuggling Ring · Texas
- Army Soldiers Nabbed in Alien Smuggling Scheme · Texas
- Smuggler Adan Hernandez-Nunez Gets 50 Months for Rape, Alien Harboring · Texas
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Human Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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