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Two men sentenced to prison in Mexican cartel-linked people-smuggling scheme – lonestarlive.com

Two human smugglers linked to a Mexican cartel have been sentenced to federal prison, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas Alamdar S. Hamdani said Wednesday.

Laredo resident Francisco Suarez, 20, and Luis Daniel Segura Guzmán, 26, a Mexican national living in Laredo, were sentenced for their roles in an extensive human-smuggling conspiracy involving the Del Noreste Cartel, Hamdani said.

Suarez pleaded guilty on Dec. 20, 2023, and Segura Guzman pleaded guilty on Jan. 18, officials said.

U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña sentenced Suarez to 33 months in federal prison and Segura Guzman to 30 months. Once released from prison, they must serve three years of supervised release.

Because Segura Guzman is not a US citizen, he is expected to face removal proceedings once he is released from prison.

The judge’s hearing was told that Suarez and Segura Guzman were part of the Los Fantasmas gang, which authorities say works with Mexican cartels in human smuggling.

Saldaña imposed sentencing enhancements that held each responsible for the smuggling of at least 100 undocumented immigrants or more. The judge said they were both “committed to this lifestyle” and noted the importance of a sentence to deter them from resuming people smuggling in the future.

Accomplice Bernardo Aniceto Garza, 27, Laredo, also pleaded guilty in the case and is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 4, the news release said.

Authorities were alerted to the human smuggling operation on August 23, 2023, when they discovered a Facebook post that appeared to advertise transportation services for undocumented immigrants via sleeper cabs on tractor trailers.

Investigators determined that Segura Guzman coordinated the transportation of three undocumented immigrants for about $8,000 and arranged for Garza to pick them up in a black Ford Raptor in Laredo that afternoon.

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