PHOENIX – Yesterday, in a chilling conclusion to a tragic smuggling case, Mexican national Hector Salas-Garcia, 40, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Douglas L. Rayes to 121 months’ imprisonment for his role in a rollover accident that killed four undocumented aliens.
On April 27, 2008, Salas-Garcia was driving a dilapidated 1989 pickup truck packed with at least 31 passengers through the Eloy countryside when it careened off the road and rolled over. The fatalities were all illegal immigrants he was transporting across the border to further their presence in the United States.
Salas-Garcia fled the scene before authorities arrived, only to return to Mexico via his brother Agustin Salas-Garcia, who later pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact. Agustin was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment and subsequently deported in 2009.
The grim investigation into this horror was a joint effort by United States Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa Jennis led the prosecution on behalf of the District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-15-01157-PHX-DLR
RELEASE NUMBER: 2017-032_Salas-Garcia
For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit www.justice.gov/usao/az/. Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
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Key Facts
- State: Arizona
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|Human Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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