The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California announced charges Tuesday against five illegal immigrants in an alleged human smuggling attempt gone wrong that resulted in at least three deaths, including a 14-year-old boy from India. (Fox News)
U.S. Border Patrol agents later identified two vehicles involved, apprehended the drivers and recovered eight of the remaining nine migrants missing from the boat, leaving only the 10-year-old child unaccounted for.
The U.S. attorney’s office charged the three Mexican nationals caught allegedly transporting the migrants — Melissa Jenelle Cota, 33, Gustavo Lara, 32, and Sergio Rojas-Fregosa, 31 — with transportation of illegal aliens. They face maximum sentences of ten years in prison and $500,000 fines.
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Rojas-Fregoso, identified as having previously been deported Dec. 19, 2023, is also facing an additional two years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon said "the drowning deaths of these children are a heartbreaking reminder of how little human traffickers care about the costs of their deadly business."
U.S. Border agents patrol the Pacific Ocean where the U.S.-Mexico border wall enters the water at Border Field State Park in San Diego Nov. 20, 2018. (Reuters/Mike Blake)
Shawn Gibson, special agent in charge of HSI San Diego, said "yesterday's heartbreaking events are a stark reminder of the urgent need to dismantle these criminal networks driven by greed."
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"Human smuggling, regardless of the route, is not only illegal but extremely dangerous. Smugglers often treat people as disposable commodities, leading to tragic and sometimes deadly consequences, as we saw in this case," Gibson said.
"The HSI, along with the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Coast Guard and other partners from the Marine Task Force, remains firmly committed to holding those responsible accountable for these senseless deaths."
Peter Pinedo is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/five-illegals-charged-alleged-maritime-human-smuggling-attempt-left-child-dead