Jesus Lopez Cabrera, Alien Transportation Conspiracy, Texas 2013

LAREDO, Texas - A federal jury verdict has convicted Jesus Lopez Cabrera, a Florida truck driver, of conspiracy to transport and transportation of undocumented persons in Texas.

The conviction stems from a three-day trial in U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña's court, where the jury deliberated for less than two hours.

According to the investigation, Jesus Lopez Cabrera worked for Tiger Express Services Inc., a small trucking company with five to six drivers that moved goods and human beings like cargo.

During the trial, the jury heard testimony that drivers were caught with undocumented persons in the back of their vehicles on July 27, 2012; Oct. 11, 2012; Oct. 27, 2012; and Nov. 9, 2012, at various checkpoints in South Texas.

Cabrera was caught at the I-35 Border Patrol Checkpoint north of Laredo with 14 undocumented persons in the back of his tractor trailer, packed like cargo in a small space between wooden crates.

The tractor trailer had a Tiger Express Services Inc. logo on it and was registered to Cabrera.

Evidence also proved Cabrera purchased a trailer in McAllen on Oct. 3, 2012, which was used to haul 13 undocumented persons on Nov. 9, 2012, who were packed in small spaces amongst tomatoes.

Cabrera is expected to be sentenced in the late Spring of 2013, at which time he will face up to 10 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000.

The matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations in conjunction with the U.S. Border Patrol.

Assistant United States Attorneys Elizabeth R. Rabe and James Bruce Hepburn prosecuted the case.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdtx/pr/florida-truck-driver-convicted-alien-transportation-conspiracy