A UK citizen and Eritrean national has pleaded guilty to smuggling up to 99 undocumented African immigrants into the United States for profit.
Habtom Merhay, 47, operated primarily from his residence in Dubai, orchestrating the unlawful smuggling of the undocumented immigrants, including those from Eritrea and Ethiopia, into the US.
According to his plea agreement, Merhay admitted to providing fraudulent travel documents, purchasing airline tickets for travel to South and Central America, and then coordinating with a network of smugglers to facilitate the travel by air, land and water across Central America and Mexico and into the US. The immigrants were smuggled into the US in exchange for fees up to $14,000.
Merhay pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton of the District of Columbia, and is scheduled for sentencing on Dec. 16, 2014.
Merhay was in the custody of Moroccan authorities between his arrest in Marrakech, Morocco, in August 2013 and extradition to the United States on April 25, 2014.
The investigation was led by HSI’s Washington, D.C., Field Office, with the support of the Human Smuggling Trafficking Center and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Jay Bauer of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Frederick Yette of the District of Columbia. The extradition was handled by Dan E. Stigall of the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs.
The Moroccan Ministry of Justice provided significant assistance in the case, for which the Justice Department and HSI expressed their gratitude.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. of the District of Columbia and Special Agent in Charge Clark Settles of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations’ (HSI) Washington, D.C., Field Office made the announcement.
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Key Facts
- State: District of Columbia
- Category: Human Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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