ALPINE, Texas — Three Fort Cavazos soldiers were arrested on criminal charges related to their alleged involvement in a conspiracy to smuggle undocumented noncitizens following an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations special agents.
The U.S. Border Patrol and Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division are assisting with the case.
On Nov. 27, a U.S. Border Patrol agent initiated a vehicle stop in Presidio, Texas. However, the vehicle fled as the agent approached the passenger side and struck a second Border Patrol vehicle, injuring an agent inside, according to the filed criminal complaint. Presidio County sheriff’s deputies and Presidio police officers eventually stopped the vehicle and apprehended four individuals, three of whom were undocumented noncitizens — one Mexican national and two Guatemalan nationals.
The fourth individual was Emilio Mendoza Lopez, who claimed to be the front seat passenger in the vehicle. The driver, alleged to be Angel Palma, fled on foot, and was located the following day at a hotel in Odessa, Texas.
Mendoza Lopez and Palma allegedly traveled from Fort Cavazos, near Kileen, Texas, to Presidio to pick up and transport undocumented noncitizens. A third individual, Enrique Jauregui, is alleged to be the recruiter and facilitator of the human smuggling conspiracy. Data extracted from Palma’s phone through a search warrant revealed messages between the three soldiers indicating collaboration in the smuggling operation.
Mendoza Lopez made his initial appearance Dec. 2 in Alpine before U.S. Magistrate Judge David B. Fannin. Mendoza Lopez is charged with bringing in and harboring undocumented noncitizens.
Palma and Jauregui are scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Manske for their initial appearance hearings in Waco, Texas, on Dec. 6. The two codefendants are charged in a separate criminal complaint with bringing in and harboring undocumented noncitizens and assaulting a federal agent. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Cayton is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.