Heriberto Barajas-Coria, Alien Smuggling, Texas 2014

A horrific tale of human exploitation has come to a close with the sentencing of Heriberto Barajas-Coria, a Mexican citizen, to six years in prison for his role in an alien smuggling operation that resulted in the death of one undocumented immigrant.

The case began on June 1, 2012, when several undocumented aliens entered the United States from Mexico and were guided to a stash house in a trailer park in McAllen, Texas. Two days later, they were driven for approximately three hours, exiting their vehicles and navigating through the brush for five days before finally reaching a road.

After a two-hour drive, a 40-year-old Mexican male died, and Barajas-Coria instructed two other undocumented aliens to leave the body by the side of the road. The other aliens were taken to a stash house in Houston, where they were forced to pay smuggling fees, which ultimately led to Barajas-Coria's downfall.

On June 11, 2012, Barajas-Coria contacted a relative of one of the undocumented aliens to demand smuggling fees. That relative contacted the authorities, who arranged for a meeting with Barajas-Coria to pay the fees. However, Barajas-Coria fled the meeting, only to be later arrested.

Barajas-Coria pleaded guilty on February 6, 2014, to conspiracy to transport and harbor aliens, which resulted in the death of one undocumented immigrant. U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal handed down a total sentence of 72 months in federal prison.

As an illegal alien, Barajas-Coria is expected to face deportation proceedings following his release from prison. The case was investigated by agents of Homeland Security Investigations, the Bee County Sheriff's Office, and the Nueces County Office of the Medical Examiner, with former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Dan Menes prosecuting the case and Richard Bennett handling the sentencing.

Barajas-Coria will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdtx/pr/mexican-man-sentenced-alien-smuggling-operation-resulting-death