Four Mexican men were arrested this week, totaling six charged after a trailer with deceased migrants was found near San Antonio last year.
The abandoned tractor-trailer was found on the outskirts of San Antonio carrying 53 dead migrants (Source: The Washington Post).
4 more individuals were arrested on Monday
Federal prosecutors announced on Tuesday that four additional men have been arrested in Texas in relation to a human smuggling case that resulted in the deaths of 53 individuals near San Antonio last year. With these recent arrests, the total number of individuals charged in connection with the incident now stands at six.
The arrests took place on Monday, just one day before the first anniversary of the tragic discovery of the deceased migrants. These arrests are regarded as a noteworthy advancement in the federal investigation considering the case to be one of the most lethal incidents involving migrants along the southern border of the United States in recent times, according to The New York Times.
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A makeshift memorial was set up last year where officials found dozens of people dead in an abandoned tractor-trailer in June 2022 in San Antonio (Source: Eric Gay via The New York Times).
Human Trafficking Case in San Antonio
On June 27, 2022, a tractor-trailer with malfunctioning air conditioning was found abandoned on the outskirts of San Antonio, and dozens of migrants from Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras were found. The temperatures on that day soared as high as 103 degrees Fahrenheit (39.4 degrees Celsius), according to US News.
The indictment claims that some of the defendants were aware of the broken air conditioning in the trailer and knew it was unable to provide cool air to the migrants inside.
When the suspects opened the trailer’s door after a three-hour journey, they discovered that 48 migrants, including the pregnant woman, had died. Sixteen people were taken to the hospital, unfortunately, five of them died.
All four individuals have been charged with conspiracy to transport and transportation of migrants illegally resulting in death, as well as conspiracy to transport and transportation of migrants illegally resulting in serious injury, according to the prosecutor’s office.
If convicted, they could potentially face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
