Smuggling ringleader arrested for Texas migrant death tragedy

Guatemalan authorities arrested seven individuals on Wednesday, Aug. 21, linked to a human smuggling operation that led to the deaths of 53 migrants in Texas in 2022 . The migrants, including eight children, died of asphyxiation after being abandoned in a tractor-trailer under extreme heat.

The smuggling ring, known as "Los Orozcos" is accused of transporting hundreds of migrants and profiting millions over the years.

These arrests are part of Joint Task Force Alpha , a collaboration between the U.S. Department of Justice and Homeland Security aimed at dismantling human smuggling networks in Central America, particularly in Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico.

Among those arrested is Rigoberto Román Miranda Orozco , who is believed to be the ringleader of the operation. His extradition has been requested by U.S. authorities. The arrests followed 13 raids across three Guatemalan departments, where authorities also seized vehicles, cash and rescued other migrants.

In June 2022, 65 migrants were packed into a tractor-trailer without air conditioning, enduring a three-hour journey from Laredo to San Antonio, Texas. When the trailer was opened, 48 migrants were found dead, and five more died later in hospitals.

U.S. officials revealed that Los Orozcos charged migrants up to $15,000 each for the perilous journey, often allowing multiple attempts to cross the U.S. border. The smuggling network operated across Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico, using shared routes, stash houses and trailers.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri condemned the smugglers for prioritizing profit over human lives.

“This tragedy is a dire warning of the dangers that human smugglers cause by exposing migrants to life-threatening conditions for the smugglers’ financial gain,” she said, pledging continued efforts to dismantle such networks.

This enforcement action marks the latest effort in the joint U.S.-Guatemalan operation, which has resulted in multiple arrests aimed at bringing justice to the victims of the tragic 2022 smuggling event.

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