SAN ANTONIO — Arrest records are shedding more light on last week's Quarry incident in which a 27-year-old woman survived a gunshot to the face while fending off a teen suspect from stealing her car, including a potential motive.
According to an affidavit, 18-year-old Julio Rivera told detectives a friend asked him about stealing a car for human smuggling, adding that he was dropped off when he noticed Alana Castaneda and her Mercedes in the Whole Foods parking lot.
Harry Jimenez, who served 16 years with the Department of Homeland Security as a special agent, says human smuggling is traditionally not connected with violent crimes. But, he emphasized, criminal organizations tend to target younger individuals to help smuggle people across the border.
“You have prices up to $100,000 to bring someone into the U.S. illegally, so these organizations have a lot of money and a lot need," Jimenez said.
He noted human-smuggling groups may utilize certain types of vehicles to better blend in with the region and avoid police detection.
In some instances, however, it can turn deadly.
“Unfortunately, in the last few months, there have been several cases of rollover vehicles full of illegal immigrants, many who lose their life because they overload these vehicles,” Jimenez said.
What caught Jimenez’s attention about the Quarry situation was the Mercedes as a targeted vehicle for potential human smuggling as indicated by Rivera.
“If, in fact, this high-end type vehicle was intended for human smuggling, we are looking at perhaps a human-smuggling organization that already has stash houses in San Antonio—they already brought the individuals from the border and now they need a vehicle that can mix better on the I-35 or the I-10 corridor,” Jimenez said.
While Jimenez isn’t able to recommend what one might do in a carjacking situation, he did offer this commentary: “The only thing that I can tell you as a retired law enforcement officer is how much value we put to our lives, a vehicle probably has insurance. (When it comes to) our lives, we don’t have a second chance.”