SAN ANTONIO – United States Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas announced today that federal prosecutors in the district filed 234 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from Aug. 22 through 28.
Two of the arrests were made in Del Rio.
Among the new cases, Mexican national Joel Guerrero-Sanchez was arrested in Medina County on Wednesday and charged with alien smuggling. Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) conducted a traffic stop on a tractor-trailer allegedly driven by Guerrero-Sanchez along I-35. The criminal complaint alleges that a search of the tractor and trailer revealed two illegal aliens hidden in a compartment inside the sleeper cab. If convicted, Guerrero-Sanchez faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
Samuel Josias Ruiz-Diaz, also a Mexican national, was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents in Del Rio. He’s charged with being an alien illegally present in the U.S., having been previously removed to Mexico in April. In 2022, Ruiz-Diaz was convicted for two separate DWI charges in Minnesota.
Also in Del Rio, a Fijian national in the U.S. on an immigration visa was arrested on an alien smuggling conspiracy charge. Viliame Fonolahi Ralulu was pulled over on Highway 277 south of Brackettville when U.S. Border Patrol agents allegedly observed a subject in the back seat look up then duck down in an attempt to conceal themselves. During an immigration inspection, two passengers were allegedly discovered in the back seat and determined to be illegally present in the U.S.
A Mexican national was taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody on Aug. 22 after being arrested in San Antonio for evading arrest with previous conviction. Juan Moreno Lopez faces an illegal re-entry charge after being previously removed from the U.S. four times in addition to four voluntary returns to Mexico. His extensive criminal record began with a burglary in 1988 and includes multiple convictions for evading arrest in San Antonio and Williamson County.
In Midland, Mexican national Orlando Everado Aguirre-Barra was federally charged with illegal re-entry. He was initially arrested by DPS on July 25 and had been previously removed from the United States in 2019 following a conviction for illegal re-entry. Aguirre-Barra was also convicted in Phoenix, Arizona in 2014 for criminal trespass and possession of a controlled substance, and in 2015 for burglary.
Samuel Josias Ruiz-Diaz, also a Mexican national, was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents in Del Rio. He’s charged with being an alien illegally present in the U.S., having been previously removed to Mexico in April. In 2022, Ruiz-Diaz was convicted for two separate DWI charges in Minnesota.
Also in Del Rio, a Fijian national in the U.S. on an immigration visa was arrested on an alien smuggling conspiracy charge. Viliame Fonolahi Ralulu was pulled over on Highway 277 south of Brackettville when U.S. Border Patrol agents allegedly observed a subject in the back seat look up then duck down in an attempt to conceal themselves. During an immigration inspection, two passengers were allegedly discovered in the back seat and determined to be illegally present in the U.S.
A Mexican national with a violent criminal record was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol and charged with illegal re-entry in El Paso. Frederico Bedolla-Bedolla has been removed from the U.S. four times and has been convicted in Arizona for two disorderly conduct charges for fighting and assault causing fear of physical injury, as well as domestic violence.
Justin Ross Meunier, a U.S. citizen with multiple felony convictions, was arrested for allegedly transporting three illegal aliens near the Tornillo Port of Entry. A criminal complaint alleges that U.S. Border Patrol agents observed Meunier’s vehicle stop near an orchard before three individuals emerged from hiding and boarded the vehicle. The agents approached and Meunier allegedly yelled in Spanish for the suspected aliens to get out and run. Meunier has been convicted for alien smuggling twice before, leading to 18 months of probation in 2019 and 21 months in prison in 2021.
U.S. Border Patrol agents also arrested Francisco Vidales-Aldaba for alien smuggling near the Bridge of the Americas Port of Entry. An agent allegedly observed two individuals, appearing wet and muddy, exit a residence and flag down a vehicle, which they boarded. Vidales-Aldaba was identified as the driver, and all three individuals were found to be illegal aliens. A criminal complaint alleges that Vidales-Aldaba had been a foot guide to five illegal aliens on Aug. 23 and had smuggled in four to five illegal aliens at a time on 15 occasions between 2022 and 2024. Immigration records indicate he’s been granted 15 voluntary departures through El Paso, the last being on Dec. 11, 2023.
These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas comprises 68 counties located in the central and western areas of Texas, encompasses nearly 93,000 square miles and an estimated population of 7.6 million people. The district includes three of the five largest cities in Texas—San Antonio, Austin and El Paso—and shares 660 miles of common border with the Republic of Mexico.
