A Garland man is facing accusations of assisting individuals in attempting to export firearms and thousands of rounds of ammo into Mexico through the Hidalgo port of entry.
According to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in federal court, Garland police made contact with Juan Jose Roque, a citizen of El Salvador who federal authorities suspect is not a documented resident of the U.S., following a traffic stop for an improper right turn.
Police determined that Roque is the husband of Brendalit Hernandez Alvarado, a woman who was arrested by Homeland Security Investigations on June 30 for her role in a December 2020 smuggling attempt.
According to the complaint, Juan Marvin Garcia was discovered driving a vehicle with over 13,000 rounds of various types of ammunition and two 9mm pistols on Dec. 17, 2020.
Garcia admitted to knowing that the contents of the vehicle were going to be smuggled to Mexico at a later date.
He was arrested by a special agent with HSI and interviewed, and said he was contacted by an unknown individual in the Dallas area about transporting the ammunition to Hidalgo.
According to the complaint, Garcia said he took the vehicle to a location in the Dallas area and left the vehicle there while the ammunition was loaded into the car.
Garcia was then instructed to pick up the vehicle and drive it to “a parking lot located within close proximity to the Hidalgo, Texas Port Of Entry,” the complaint stated.
He was instructed to leave the vehicle in the parking lot and contact an individual in Mexico about the vehicle before heading back to his residence in Garland, according to the complaint, which went on to state that he was going to be paid $1,000 for transporting the ammunition.
Individuals determined that Alvarado was the person who had contacted Garcia about transporting the ammunition to Hidalgo.
Following her arrest, analysis of her phone revealed that Roque had “knowledge of the criminal conspiracy regarding smuggling ammunition and weapons from the United States into Mexico, and may have assisted Hernandez with this illegal activity,” the complaint read.
Police asked Roque if they could go to his residence to discuss matters pertaining to his wife’s arrest. It was determined that Roque’s address matched the location where Garcia said he had dropped off the vehicle before it was loaded with the ammunition.
Roque admitted to police that he knew about his wife’s involvement in smuggling ammunition and weapons from the U.S. into Mexico. He also told police that he had previously purchased weapons and ammunition for his wife and himself, indicating that he knew that the ammunition he purchased for his wife was intended to be smuggled into Mexico.
He also informed police that he helped conceal three boxes of ammunition in the vehicle driven by Garcia.
The complaint did not indicate when Roque will be appearing in court.
