Last week, a startling discovery unfolded along the southwestern Texas border when a Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) trooper found two migrants concealed within a gas tank during a traffic stop in Webb County. The incident, which occurred roughly 163 miles from San Antonio, led to the arrest of the vehicle's driver, Rico Gonzalo of Laredo, for human smuggling charges, as KSAT reports.
The traffic stop that exposed this drastic attempt to cross the border happened last Friday when the Texas DPS trooper initiated a search of the commercial vehicle's cab along IH-35, after its stop, and it was then the trooper's investigation extended to a place where life is not meant to sustain, inside the modified gas tank, according to a statement obtained by KSAT.
Lt. Chris Olivarez from the Texas Department of Public Safety explained that the migrants were handed over to the U.S. Border Patrol. KSAT reported that Gonzalo faces two counts of human smuggling.
A body cam video, shared by Texas DPS Spokesperson Chris Olivarez on social media, showed the moment of discovery. Rico Gonzalo, a Laredo, Texas resident, was arrested and faced legal charges for hiding two undocumented individuals, according to MSN.