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Border Patrol agents at the Javier Vega Jr. Checkpoint in Sarita nearly let a man go on Saturday who was allegedly smuggling nearly 20 people inside a grain hopper, according to a criminal complaint.
The incident happened at midnight that morning when Jose Guadalupe Benitez arrived at the checkpoint in a blue tractor-trailer pulling a grain hopper.
The primary agent conducting the initial inspection sent Benitez to secondary after a K-9 alerted to the grain hopper, according to the complaint.
“In the secondary inspection area Agents questioned the driver thinking it was an immigration secondary and let him go,” the complaint stated. “The Primary Agent then advised the other agents that it was a K9, and they were able to stop him by the backscatter area.”
After the stop, agents rolled back the tarp on the grain hopper and discovered 18 people who were in the country illegally.
In an interview, Benitez told agents he picked up his trailer at around 9:15 p.m. from the Trevino Trucking Yard in San Juan.
“Benitez stated while at the yard he removed the tarp on the top of the trailer to get the water off but never looked in the grain hopper,” the complaint stated. “He also stated that the tarp is held on by a couple straps that anyone could use to remove the tarp.”
He claims after picking up the truck he drove to Pharr and left it in an empty lot next to the Long John Silver near Nolana Loop, according to the complaint.
Then he told agents his wife picked up, took him home for a quick shower and that about 30 to 40 minutes later he picked up the truck and fueled up at a Loves at approximately 10 p.m., according to the complaint, which said he told agents he drove straight to the checkpoint with no further stops.
Benitez made a first appearance in federal court in Corpus Christi Monday morning and is being temporarily held without bond.
