A human smuggler has been apprehended by the Texas Department of Public Safety after attempting to hide and transport 27 illegal aliens in a horse trailer storage compartment.
The smuggler was towing the trailer with a Ford F-250 truck and was stopped by a DPS officer who asked to search the vehicle.
The driver, Jose Guadalupe Salinas from Palmview, consented to having his vehicle inspected by the officer. Salinas even opened a side hatch on the trailer—revealing the entire group of illegal aliens crammed inside.
According to DPS spokesperson Chris Olivarez, the group was “distressed and sweating profusely.” Three females needed medical attention due to severe dehydration resulting from a lack of ventilation in the compartment.
This is not the first time a smuggling incident in the Texas heat has turned dangerous. Two years ago more than 50 illegal aliens died in a hot tractor-trailer as a result of a smuggling operation.
These 27 illegal aliens were transferred to the custody of Border Patrol. Salinas was arrested and is set to be charged with the smuggling of persons.
This latest arrest comes as DPS continues to detain human smugglers and illegal aliens for criminal trespass. Today, DPS arrested another group of 31 illegal aliens in the Normandy area of Maverick County.
Among those arrested were two Syrian male nationals. The two men explained on camera how they reached the southwest border and where they originated from.
“We walked from Venezuela to Columbia, from Columbia in a boat to Nicaragua, Nicaragua to Honduras, to Guatemala, Guatemala to Mexico, and Mexico to here,” said the first man, named Osama Madlouma, who was en route to Houston.
The other man, named Khaled Madloumh, was also headed to Houston. He traveled the same path as Madlouma.
Earlier today, Gov. Greg Abbott reiterated his commitment to securing Texas, stating, “Texas will continue to deter and repel illegal entry along the southern border.”
