Border Patrol agents arrested a man on Thanksgiving Day after they found over 80 people inside a tractor trailer, hiding behind “decomposing” and “unrecognizable” produce.
Many of the immigrants said they feared for their lives because they were trapped inside.
Ulysses Lugo, a U.S. citizen, was charged for trying to smuggle people into the country.
According to a criminal complaint, Lugo arrived at the Falfurrias checkpoint at about 2:25 a.m. When an agent asked him where he was heading, Lugo said Houston.
Lugo told the agent he was hauling mixed produce, but couldn’t say which kind. He also failed to provide a bill of lading. The agent then checked the trailer and noticed the lock was on the wrong side of the door and wasn’t sealed or secured.
During a secondary inspection, agents found 87 people inside; 40 were from Guatemala, 27 from El Salvador, 11 from Mexico and nine from Honduras. Two juveniles from Guatemala told agents they were unaccompanied and weren’t able to provide identification.
“The individuals inside the trailer have no available means to escape without assistance from outside the trailer and were found without readily available food or water,” the complaint said.
During an interview, Lugo said he received his CDL license in 2012 and came across a call for drivers on an app called Telegram.
He added that he was in a private group chat when he was solicited to drive a trailer to Houston for $15,000.
Lugo is set to appear before Magistrate Judge Jason B. Libby for a preliminary examination and detention hearing on Dec. 1.
