HIDALGO — Three men were arrested after they tried to drive 162 live animals into Mexico through the international bridge here.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers stopped a white 2006 Ford Econoline with Mexican license plates for an outbound inspection as it tried to go into Mexico on Wednesday, according to a criminal complaint.
Two people were aboard the van, Jonathan Roberto Rojas-Casados, who was identified as the driver, and Roberto Angel Roman-Alvarez, a passenger.
During the inspection, an officer found two boxes in the center console that were concealed with a black blanket.
“The CBPO proceeded to open the boxes and observed numerous reptiles contained in small plastic containers, and several small fabric sacks sealed with tape that moved and emitted a foul odor,” the complaint said.
The boxes contained 45 geckos, 21 snakes, 20 anoles, 16 tarantulas, 16 frogs, 11 scorpions, eight rainbow jacksons, six lizards, five Chinese water dragons, three albino nelsons, three fruit fly cultures, two tegus, two tortoises, two iguanas, and two Indonesian blue tongues.
The two men were taken into custody and questioned by law enforcement officers. During the interview, the men said they were helping a family member, identified as Roberto Rojas-Ramirez, cross the animals into Mexico.
Rojas-Ramirez was found several vehicles behind the Econoline in a 2014 Ford F-150 with Mexican license plates. His vehicle was also selected for an outbound inspection.
Through the course of the investigation, officers learned he was Rojas-Casados’s father and Roman-Alvarez’s father-in-law.
“During the interview, Rojas-Casados stated that his father, Roberto Rojas-Ramirez had contacted him and asked for assistance in crossing a box of animals from the United States to Mexico,” the complaint said. “Rojas-Casados was told that he would be paid $60 US dollars to assist.”
However, Rojas-Casados did not have a permit or an import/export license to transport the animals into or out of the United States.
Roman-Alvarez also agreed to speak with law enforcement officers. He told them that while loading up the vehicle, he waited on his father-in-law, Rojas-Ramirez, to arrive with boxes of animals.
“Roman-Alvarez stated that he asked what was in the boxes and learned from his brother-in-law Jonathan Roberto Rojas-Casados that they were bringing animals from the United States to Mexico,” the complaint said.
Roman-Alvarez also told officers that he did not have a permit or a license to export the animals.
Rojas-Ramirez told law enforcement officers that he had picked up the animals and placed them inside the van, and that he expected to be paid $400 to cross them into Mexico.
He also said he didn’t have a license or a permit to export the animals, but said he did know that once in Mexico, he would need permits to house the animals, which he also did not have.
