A 20-year-old Peoria man was sentenced to 52 months in prison for his role in transporting two illegal aliens, one of whom suffered fatal injuries after jumping out of the vehicle while it was moving.
Cesar Abraam Velasquez-Munoz, 20, of Peoria, was sentenced by United States District Judge Angela M. Martinez to 52 months in prison for his role in transporting two illegal aliens in March 2024, one of whom suffered fatal injuries after jumping out of the vehicle while it was moving.
Velasquez-Munoz previously pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens for Profit Placing in Jeopardy the Life of Any Person and Resulting in Death.
On March 6, 2024, Velasquez-Munoz and his co-defendant, Steven Beltran-Lugo, picked up two illegal aliens near the Mexican border with the intent to smuggle them further into the United States.
Velasquez-Munoz drove the vehicle while he and Beltran-Lugo communicated with a Phoenix-based smuggling coordinator. When law enforcement began to follow them, the illegal aliens were told to get out of the vehicle. The first illegal alien jumped out of the moving car while it was traveling approximately 45 miles per hour.
Velasquez-Munoz then accelerated as the second illegal alien attempted to exit the vehicle, causing him to violently strike the pavement. As a result, he suffered a brain hemorrhage and internal bleeding, ultimately succumbing to these injuries two days later in the hospital.
The sentencing is the result of the coordinated efforts of Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), a partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which has been elevated and expanded by the Attorney General with a mandate to target cartels and transnational criminal organizations to eliminate human smuggling and trafficking networks operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and Colombia that impact public safety and the security of our borders.
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: 24-CR-01674-TUC-AMM (EJM)
RELEASE NUMBER: 2025-073_Velasquez-Munoz
Related Federal Cases
- Trajahn Alexander Johnson, Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens Resulting in Death, Arizona 2023 · Texas
- Elizabeth Miranda Lozano, Smuggling Resulting in Death, Texas 2021 · Texas
- Juan Carlos Hernandez, Alien Smuggling, Arizona 2023 · California
- Amalia Gonzalez-Lara, Human Smuggling Conspiracy, Arizona 2024 · Alaska
- Manuel Victor Gastelum, Human Smuggling, Arizona 2024 · Texas
Key Facts
- State: Arizona
- Category: Human Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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