The U.S. Department of Justice, along with domestic and international partners, has dismantled a human smuggling network based in Guatemala that was responsible for the deaths of 53 migrants in a tractor-trailer in Texas in 2022.
The migrants, including eight children, died in San Antonio after being trapped in a tractor-trailer that had a malfunctioning air-conditioning unit. It is the deadliest human smuggling case in American history. Twenty-one of those who died were Guatemalans, the Justice Department said in an announcement.
“Over the past two years, the Justice Department has worked methodically to hold accountable those responsible for the horrific tragedy in San Antonio that killed 53 people who had been preyed on by human smugglers,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in the announcement. “With these arrests, the Justice Department and our partners in Guatemala have now arrested a total of 14 people for their alleged involvement in this tragedy. We are committed to continuing to work with our partners both in the United States and abroad to target the most prolific and dangerous human smuggling groups operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Colombia and Panama.”
Guatemalan authorities executed search warrants on Aug. 21, investigators said. Law enforcement arrested Rigoberto Ramon Miranda-Orozco, who was indicted in the Western District of Texas in the investigation. Six others arrested in the investigation will be charged in Guatemala. Investigators did not release their identities.
Miranda-Orozco, 47, was indicted for allegedly conspiring with other smugglers to facilitate the travel of four people from Guatemala to the United States. He charged the migrants up to $15,000, investigators said. Three migrants died in the tractor-trailer, and the fourth was seriously injured.
A total of 65 people were loaded onto the tractor-trailer by the organization, the Justice Department said. Some of the migrants lost consciousness due to the extreme heat and lack of air conditioning. Others clawed at the walls, attempting to escape as temperatures climbed to 103 degrees.
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Forty-eight of the migrants had already died by the time the truck reached San Antonio from Mexico. Five were transported to local hospitals, where they died. One of the victims was a pregnant woman.
“This tragedy is a dire warning of the dangers that human smugglers cause by exposing migrants to life-threatening conditions for the smugglers’ financial gain,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Dismantling human smuggling networks is a critical priority for the Criminal Division, and we will continue to work with our domestic and international law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute these cases, no matter where the offenders may be found.”
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