SAN ANTONIO — Bexar County has identified the seven suspects initially detained and now facing charges in connection with a large human-smuggling operation discovered on the south side Thursday.
Twenty-six migrants ranging in age from 18 to 54 were rescued by authorities, and several of them briefly hospitalized, after authorities said they were brought to Bexar County in a hidden gooseneck trailer compartment. As of Monday, all 12 patients brought to University Hospital had been discharged after being checked for injuries and heat-related illness.
Sheriff Javier Salazar called the operation "clearly cartel-related."
Seven people were taken into custody Thursday in the area of Oak Island Drive and Loop 1604. Abelardo Herrera, 39, Rafael Mendoza, 36, and Cristobal Eduardo Deleon, 28, each face 26 counts of human-smuggling as well as charges of engaging in organized criminal activity.
Three other suspects – 23-year-old Mario Enrique Elizondo, 30-year-old Vanessa Castillo and 45-year-old Ismael Hernandez – face charges of operating a stash house and engaging in organized criminal activity. Jose Marvin Hernandez, 21, faces evading arrest charges.
All the suspects were booked into the Bexar County jail. The Bexar County Sheriff's Office (BCSO) says investigators also seized multiple vehicles found on the Oak Island property.
The migrants were rescued from what Salazar called "stifling hot" conditions in a "shack"-like structure that had no AC or running water Thursday, when temperatures were threatening to reach 100 degrees in South Texas. BCSO was initially alerted to the potential operation and was able to locate the gooseneck trailer that appeared to have individuals hidden onboard.
"That trailer, you can be stranding right up on it, and not know that thing contains 26 people," Salazar said Thursday, adding it came from Laredo. "It drove by thousands of cars, easily, on that three-hour trip from the border."
Migrant rights advocate Gabriel Rosales, of the Texas League of Latin American Citizens (LULAC), is focused on pressuring politicians to act on passing comprehensive immigration reform.
“We do need to understand that it’s the inaction that is creating these opportunities for these people to be taken advantage of," he said. "What is the solution? That solution lies in the hands of Congress. It’s not if, it’s when another trailer is going to come in and when we are going to find more immigrants dead if we don’t do something now.”
Authorities said the migrants came from Mexico, Honduras, Venezuela and Guatemala.
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