A 23-year-old Mexican national, Jose Guadalupe Antonio-Arredondo, pleaded guilty to human smuggling resulting in death, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas. Antonio-Arredondo admitted that on July 12, 2024, he acted as a river guide in an attempt to smuggle a noncitizen into the United States.
As part of the scheme, Antonio-Arredondo guided the individual and a brush guide across the river and to the border wall before returning. After crossing, the brush guide and the individual continued their journey north. Shortly after, the individual began experiencing difficulty breathing, eventually collapsing.
The brush guide, fearing detection by law enforcement, abandoned the individual in the brush and fled to a nearby home. Authorities later discovered the individual and rushed him to a hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead on July 17, 2024.
Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane accepted Antonio-Arredondo’s guilty plea and set sentencing for June 20. The defendant faces a potential sentence of life in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei commented on the case, emphasizing the dangers of human smuggling and the tragic loss of life. “Human smuggling is a dangerous enterprise, one that doesn’t care about the lives or well-being of those that are being smuggled,” Ganjei said. “The loss of life in this incident is yet another example of why it is so vital to discourage people from risking their lives trying to enter this country illegally.”
Antonio-Arredondo remains in custody awaiting sentencing.
