An El Paso man has been sentenced to federal prison after pleading guilty to using a cross-border tunnel to smuggle illegal aliens into the U.S.
Oscar Ivan Carrillo and his accomplices constructed the tunnel by connecting pre-existing storm drain tunnels from Juarez, Mexico to El Paso. Illegal aliens were then guided through the tunnels into El Paso where a box truck awaited them.
The truck would wait over the tunnel to allow the illegal aliens to enter unnoticed through a hidden trap door.
“Mexican drug cartels and the alien smuggling organizations (ASOs) with which they partner care nothing about the hopes and dreams of those they illegally smuggle into the United States,” said U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas Justin R. Simmons.
“They care only about the money each of the illegal aliens pay to be smuggled,” he continued. “Even after putting their lives at risk by entering the country using the method employed in this case, as well as more dangerous methods, the cartels and their ASOs often extort these illegal aliens by holding them in U.S. stash houses until their family members can pay additional money for their release.”
The tunnel was first discovered in January 2025 by ICE Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Border Patrol agents. A further investigation by the agencies led to Carrillo’s arrest in June 2025.
Carrillo’s indictment shows he was charged with smuggling and transporting illegal aliens as well as the construction and use of a cross-border tunnel.
Appearing before the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas in November, Carrillo pleaded guilty to one of his four indicted charges, conspiracy to use a border tunnel.
On Thursday, Carrillo was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison. He also has an additional three years of supervision following release from prison.
The case is part of Joint Task Force Alpha, a partnership effort of the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security to “lead [the] effort in combating high-impact human smuggling and trafficking committed by cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations.”
