Shipping container opened with deceased smuggled migrants inside.
Eleven people were indicted this week for their alleged involvement in an attempted human smuggling case that resulted in the deaths of seven migrants.
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All 11 were charged with one count of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death and one count of aiding and abetting transport of illegal aliens resulting in death. A conviction would carry a punishment up to life in prison.
At a news conference on Friday, federal officials said the indictments included four U.S. citizens, five non-U.S. citizens and two lawful permanent residents.
The 11 defendants charged are:
- Karina Garcia, 37, of Del Rio
- Edson Alejandro Perez, 18, of Del Rio
- Seferino Huerta-Casillas, 35, of Mexico
- Jonas Ulloa-Aguilera, 25, of Honduras
- Mayra Alejandra Huerta, 32, of Del Rio
- Maria Norma Neri de Moran, 56, of Mexico
- Damian Huerta Analucas, 55, of Mexico
- Rosario Cristal Lopez-Saldana, 26, of Mexico
- Eric Hernandez, 40, of Eagle Pass
- Franklin Williams Ayala Aguilera, 30, of Honduras
- Pascual Raymundo Loarca, 34, of Guatemala
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas Justin Simmons said eight of those indicted this week were taken into custody during a multi-day Homeland Security Taskforce operation.
Mayra Huerta was taken into custody in May on charges of harboring illegal aliens. Simmons said Huerta has remained in federal custody since her arrest.
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Woman arrested in connection with deadly migrant train cases
A Del Rio woman has been arrested in connection with a federal investigation into human smuggling tied to deadly migrant train cases in Laredo and San Antonio.
Karina Garcia, a U.S. citizen, and Seferino Huerta Casillas, a Mexican national, remain at large, authorities said.
Authorities said Karina Garcia and Seferino Huerta-Casillas are still at large.
Indictment alleges group used train cars to smuggle immigrants into the United States
According to the indictment, the group operated a human smuggling organization that used cargo trains to transport migrants into the United States after they crossed illegally from Mexico. Federal authorities said the group has operated since at least April 2023 and that family members and friends of those seeking to enter the United States were paying between $1,500 and $10,000.
Migrants found dead in boxcar
The indictment alleges the group began to organize the smuggling of seven migrants from Acuna, Mexico to Del Rio in April 2026.
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Then, around May 9, the smugglers brought seven people to the United States from Mexico and allegedly cut the lock off a shipping container on a Union Pacific train, put those seven people inside the container and shut the door.
Authorities said smugglers opened the door to the container when the train arrived in San Antonio and found the people inside to be in distress. Authorities believe the smugglers ran from the area, leaving six people inside the shipping container while the train continued to Laredo.
The seventh migrant was found dead along the railroad tracks in San Antonio after railroad police and federal agents began patrolling the tracks in San Antonio.
Six others were found dead by a worker at the Union Pacific rail yard in Laredo on May 10 after they spotted a leg sticking out from the shipping container. One of the victims was a 14-year-old boy. Authorities said the victims were three Honduran nationals and four Mexican nationals.
Investigators said a family member received a frantic text message from someone inside the shipping container. The sender reported that they were trapped in a boxcar, it was getting “very, very hot,” and they were in physical distress.
Authorities estimate temperatures inside such airtight containers can reach between 120 and 150 degrees.
Laredo city officials said the six people found in the boxcar died hours before reaching Laredo. They also said they died of heat stroke.
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