During the six-week government shutdown, the Western District of Texas U.S. Attorney's Office filed 1,709 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases, with law enforcement officers continuing to pursue violators despite not receiving paychecks. "Despite not getting paid for the past six weeks, the Western District of Texas maintained its diligent pursuit of bringing to justice those who would violate our immigration laws," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Notable arrests included Juan Jesus Carranza Jr., who led authorities on a high-speed chase while allegedly transporting five undocumented individuals, and Gerardo Francisco Hernandez-Acosta, indicted for transporting aliens for money. Two others, Derian Lenin Estupinan Chacon and Francarlos Requena Vasquez, were arrested in San Antonio on firearm charges following a shooting investigation, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Manuel Elias Ramos-Santos, a Honduran national, was arrested in San Antonio on October 26 for speeding while carrying a loaded firearm, a counterfeit $100 bill, and fake ID. Florentino Cortes Uribe, a Mexican national, was arrested for allegedly selling drugs and firearms to undercover officers. In El Paso, Hugo Fabian Cazarez-Garcia was arrested for attempting to enter the U.S. with stolen documents; he had been removed from the country eight times and had prior convictions, including two DUIs. These cases involved cooperation between federal, state, and local agencies. The U.S. Attorney’s Office handling the cases covers 68 counties and 7.6 million people along the 660-mile Texas-Mexico border, including San Antonio, Austin, and El Paso, as stated by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
