Feds charge 4 people with operating 'one of the largest human smuggling rings' in the US


Feds charge 4 people with operating

Thao Nguyen USA TODAY Published 4 March 2025 Four men have been charged with operating a criminal organization that allegedly smuggled thousands of people without legal status from Guatemala to the U.S. over five years, federal authorities announced Monday. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph McNally called the criminal network "one of the largest human smuggling rings in the nation," during a news conference Monday. Prosecutors claimed that the organization transported about 20,000 people into Los Angeles and Phoenix from 2019 through July 2024. The organization is also accused of holding some of the immigrants hostage in stash houses and is responsible for the deaths of seven people — including a 4-year-old child — who were killed in a November 2023 car crash in Oklahoma, according to prosecutors. All four defendants were identified as Guatemalan nationals who resided in Los Angeles-area neighborhoods, including Westlake, downtown Los Angeles, and South Los Angeles. They were all in the country without legal permission at the time of the alleged crimes, prosecutors said. The four defendants were charged with one count of conspiracy to illegally bring people to the U.S., transporting people illegally in the U.S., and harboring people without legal status in the U.S. for private financial gain and resulting in death, according to prosecutors. The defendants each face a maximum sentence of death or life imprisonment if convicted on all charges.