With the assistance of the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office and the McAllen Police Department, U.S. Border Patrol agents apprehended two men who were in the country illegally last week and accused them of harboring a dozen others who were also in the country illegally.
Carlos Ernesto Rodriguez-Carbajal, born in 1989, and Carlos Gabriel Reyes-Torres, born in 1997, both of Mexico, made their initial appearances in federal court Monday morning.
They were arrested Thursday while Border Patrol was following up on information agents received the previous day regarding a stash house in McAllen.
On Thursday, while the agents were conducting surveillance, they saw a gray Ford Escape depart the location and drive to Pharr, where the agents saw two people get into the Escape, according to a criminal complaint, which indicated that Border Patrol then asked the sheriff’s office for assistance and a deputy responded and pulled the vehicle over for a traffic violation.
Upon questioning, Rodriguez, the driver, said he was in the country illegally and claimed he didn’t know the other two people in the vehicle, the complaint stated.
Border Patrol determined those people were also in the country illegally and said Rodriguez provided agents consent to search his residence, which was on a property with two homes, one in the front and one in the back.
Agents saw a man, later identified as Reyes, exit the front residence and walk towards the back one.
Agents, deputies and McAllen police searched the front residence but found it was empty.
When they knocked on the rear residence’s door, agents said Reyes answered and then exited, with five people following him, according to the complaint.
Border Patrol said authorities found an additional five other people inside the residence and determined that all of them were in the country illegally.
According to the complaint, Reyes said he crossed into the U.S. Dec. 10 and had been living at the residence.
“Reyes claimed that he was going to pay $7,000, half of which he has already paid, to be smuggled to Virginia. Reyes added that he ran out of money and was offered to be smuggled to Houston if he worked at the residence, which he accepted,” the complaint stated.
Border Patrol said Reyes told them he would receive people at the residence and get calls letting him know when people were going to be picked up in addition to providing food, water and a cellphone to people before they were sent off.
According to the complaint, Rodriguez would transport people and said he crossed in February and had been living with his friend, Reyes.
Both men are being temporarily held without bond pending detention and probable cause hearings scheduled for later this week.
