Press release from United States Attorney’s Office Western District of Texas
SAN ANTONIO — Federal prosecutors in the Western District of Texas filed 192 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from Jan. 23 to Jan. 29, announced U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons. Charges were brought against human smugglers and individuals in the country illegally with past convictions for violent crimes, DWIs and multiple prior removals.
Among the cases with local ties, Martin Vaquera-Garcia, a Mexican national, was arrested at the Eagle Pass Port of Entry after allegedly attempting to smuggle a handgun and four magazines from the United States into Mexico. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers referred a passenger bus for inspection, and a scan allegedly revealed the magazines inside a suitcase belonging to Vaquera-Garcia. He also admitted to concealing a 9mm handgun inside a medical fracture boot. A criminal complaint alleges Vaquera-Garcia expected to be paid $150 for smuggling the firearm.
U.S. Border Patrol agents also arrested Danys Ricardo Martinez-Lazo, a Salvadoran national, in Eagle Pass. Martinez-Lazo was convicted in Maryland in August 2025 of negligent manslaughter and sentenced to three years of confinement. He was removed to El Salvador on Nov. 24 but was later found back in the United States.
Another arrest in Eagle Pass involved Mexican national Ramon Mendez-Escamilla, who was charged with illegal re-entry. Mendez-Escamilla has been removed from the United States three times, most recently on Nov. 25, 2025. He has two prior convictions for driving while intoxicated and one for assault causing bodily injury to a family member.
Elsewhere in the district, Mexican national Aurelio Murillo-Ruedas was arrested Jan. 22 in Broadview, Illinois, near Chicago, following a human smuggling investigation tied to El Paso. According to a criminal complaint affidavit, Murillo-Ruedas was linked to a stash house investigation in which 26 individuals were arrested on May 1, 2025. Investigators identified him through WhatsApp communications discussing multiple smuggling schemes. He is charged with bringing in or harboring aliens.
U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested Jose Ozuna-Moreno near Sierra Blanca after encountering footprints of several individuals traveling north in the Calamity Gap area. Ozuna-Moreno allegedly admitted to being a foot guide for an alien smuggling organization and expected to receive a discount on his own smuggling fees in return for his efforts. He is charged with bringing in or harboring aliens.
Mexican national Jose Angel Alvarado-Reyes was arrested in El Paso during a worksite enforcement operation involving ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, ICE Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Border Patrol. Alvarado-Reyes has prior convictions for sexual assault and illegal re-entry and has been removed from the United States three times.
Mexican national Fredy Saligan-Perez was arrested near the Ysleta Port of Entry after previously being removed to Mexico in October 2025. In March 2025, he was convicted in Utah of child abuse with injury and assault.
In Pflugerville, Mexican national Edgar Martinez Rivera was charged with illegal re-entry after allegedly possessing a fraudulent passport discovered during a traffic stop. He has prior convictions for DWIs, burglary and theft and has been removed twice, most recently in January 2025.
These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including ICE, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance from state and local agencies.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas covers 68 counties across central and western Texas, encompassing nearly 93,000 square miles and an estimated population of 7.6 million. The district includes San Antonio, Austin and El Paso and shares approximately 660 miles of border with Mexico.
