Two men from Ciudad Juarez have found themselves on the harsh side of the U.S. justice system, receiving multi-year prison sentences for their involvement in smuggling individuals across the border, a situation that turned deadly, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office announcement.
On January 16, 2025, Benjamin Guatzozon-Gonzalez, 24, and Alfredo Silva De La Cruz, 42, were detained by U.S. Border Patrol agents near the Rio Grande River, shortly after they had scaled the border fence near the Tornillo Port of Entry; during the incident, another individual, who later died of an apparent heart attack was also discovered, the pair had left the collapsed man behind, and although rescue efforts were made, he was ultimately pronounced dead at a local hospital, this was revealed in the investigation following their apprehension.
The U.S. Attorney's Office confirmed that Guatzozon-Gonzalez and De La Cruz admitted to working as foot guides for the alien smuggling scheme. Court documents showed that Guatzozon-Gonzalez had approximately 20 illegal aliens smuggled over 16 separate instances in about a month, aligning himself with the La Empresa cartel, while De La Cruz smuggled around 50 people on 27 different occasions spanning over a one and a half year period.
United States District Judge David Briones handed down his decision on January 22, sentencing Guatzozon-Gonzalez to 36 months and De La Cruz to 45 months in federal prison, with ICE Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Border Patrol being key in the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mathew Engelbaum leading the prosecution, information provided by the U.S. Attorney's Office indicated that these sentences serve as a grim reminder of the severe consequences tied with human smuggling operations, especially when they result in tragedy.
