Southern District of Texas

DHS and DOJ Announce Historic Guatemalan Human Smuggling Extraditions
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DHS and DOJ Announce Historic Guatemalan Human Smuggling Extraditions

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security joined the U.S. Department of Justice yesterday to announce the first ever extraditions from Guatemala to the United States on charges of human smuggling resulting in death, and the first Guatemalan human smuggling extraditions to the United States of any kind in nearly five years. This announcement…

Texas man convicted of sex trafficking, possessing child pornography – ICE
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Texas man convicted of sex trafficking, possessing child pornography – ICE

HOUSTON — A Houston man pleaded guilty to several sex trafficking crimes and possession of child pornography Feb. 27 following a Human Trafficking Rescue Alliance investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Houston, the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and the Houston Police Department. A judge in the Southern District of Texas convicted Edgar Botello, 30,…

How ‘modern slavery’ thrives in the U.S. through visa programs
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How ‘modern slavery’ thrives in the U.S. through visa programs

HOUSTON – Sex trafficking and human smuggling make big headlines in Texas. They are both forms of human trafficking that victimizes many. Yet experts say another form of trafficking that is easier to accomplish is creating what many consider modern day slavery. [embedded content] It is called labor trafficking and the traffickers take advantage of…

Human Smuggler Sentenced Following Migrant Death
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Human Smuggler Sentenced Following Migrant Death

MIDLAND, Texas – A Guatemalan national man was sentenced Wednesday to 10 years in prison for immigration crimes. According to court documents, Mario Rigoberto Diego-Esteban, aka “Lentes,” 26, was sentenced following his guilty plea to one count of illegal re-entry after deportation and one count of transporting undocumented migrants for commercial advantage and private financial…

UT Tyler Professor Presents Health Care Framework to WHO at United Nations
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UT Tyler Professor Presents Health Care Framework to WHO at United Nations

  Cathy Miller, PhD, RN, professor of nursing at The University of Texas at Tyler, presented her research on human trafficking to the World Health Organization at the United Nations in New York. The UT Tyler professor is part of a team spearheading the UN’s Global Strategic Operatives for the Eradication of Human Trafficking Initiative….

Solutionaries: How ‘modern slavery’ thrives in the U.S. through visa programs
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Solutionaries: How ‘modern slavery’ thrives in the U.S. through visa programs

Houston – Sex trafficking and human smuggling make big headlines in Texas. They are both forms of human trafficking that victimizes many. Yet experts say another form of trafficking that is easier to accomplish is creating what many consider modern day slavery. It is called labor trafficking and the traffickers take advantage of the current…

Readout of Southwest Border U.S. Attorneys Visit to Mexico
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Readout of Southwest Border U.S. Attorneys Visit to Mexico

From Aug. 23 to 25, a delegation of U.S. Attorneys, their criminal division chiefs, and Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force chiefs (OCDETF) from eight border districts traveled to Mexico City to participate in a series of briefings and meetings on security cooperation matters, including efforts to combat transnational criminal organizations and efforts to…

Eight arrested in $2.3 million human smuggling operation – Click2Houston
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Eight arrested in $2.3 million human smuggling operation – Click2Houston

HOUSTON – The Department of Justice announced the arrests of eight people in a $2.3 million human smuggling operation across four states, including Texas, on Tuesday. Court documents show the migrants paid the smugglers roughly $8,000 to get to the United States from Columbia, Guatemala, and Mexico. According to the indictment, the human smuggling organization…

Mr. Boring and the million-dollar human trafficking business in Texas – EL PAÍS USA
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Mr. Boring and the million-dollar human trafficking business in Texas – EL PAÍS USA

Anthony Boring turned pale when the border patrol stopped his trailer. He was so nervous he could barely speak. With each question, Mr. Boring shrunk further back in the driver’s seat. “What’s the cargo?” one officer asked. “I don’t know,” he stammered, keeping the vehicle inching forwards in the hope that he would be able…