Publisher’s Note: The following information was provided by the U.S. Department of Justice, Western District of Texas.
SAN ANTONIO – Federal prosecutors in the Western District of Texas filed 215 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from May 1 to May 7, announced U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons. Charges were brought against human smugglers and illegal aliens with past convictions for numerous DWIs, violent crime, drug trafficking, theft and multiple prior removals.
Among the new cases, U.S. citizen Bryan Fernando Guillen was charged with alien smuggling after U.S. Border Patrol agents allegedly observed him dropping off an illegal alien at a stash house in El Paso. A criminal complaint alleges that, on May 4, Guillen was the driver of a Mercedes-Benz that had been under investigation and seen in a TikTok video that was also under investigation for posting content associated with alien smuggling.
USBP agents pursued the Mercedes, which allegedly failed to yield to their emergency lights and continued driving recklessly at a high rate of speed. The complaint alleges that the vehicle was found abandoned at the Ysleta Port of Entry, and that Guillen and a passenger were ultimately arrested as they attempted to run into Mexico through the POE’s southbound vehicle lanes.
Agents determined the passenger was not involved in alien smuggling and was released from custody. Guillen, however, allegedly was aware of 12 illegal aliens located at the stash house and had been working with co-conspirators for approximately seven months in several capacities related to human smuggling and harboring illegal aliens.
The May 4 stash house operation in El Paso also resulted in the arrests of Bryan Adrian Flores-Martinez and Hector Emigdio Navarro-Olivas. A criminal complaint alleges that USBP agents observed a red pickup truck traveling from the residence on West Paisano Drive to an area near Asarco, where fresh, wet, muddy footprints from six individuals were also found.
The complaint alleges that the truck returned to the residence and dropped off six illegal aliens before departing again. Shortly after, Flores-Martinez and Navarro-Olivas allegedly arrived back at the stash house and were seen carrying grocery bags into the residence before departing again.
The following day, according to the complaint, Flores-Martinez and Navarro-Olivas were arrested when they sought admission into the U.S. at the Paso Del Norte POE.
On May 2, Salvadoran national David Antonio Lazo-Alvarenga was allegedly found in a field approximately six miles east of the Tornillo POE. A felon, Lazo-Alvarenga has been convicted of three DWIs and was deported for the fourth time on June 23, 2025.
Alexi Evaristo Turcios-Nunez, an illegal alien from Honduras, faces an illegal re-entry charge in Del Rio. Turcios-Nunez was convicted of aggravated sexual assault in June 2019. He’s been previously removed from the U.S. twice, the last being May 21, 2025.
Mexican national Jose Alexis Alarcon-De La O was arrested by USBP agents on May 3 near Maverick, having been removed from the U.S. in March for the second time. In 2017, he was convicted of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Prior to that felony conviction, he was twice convicted for theft of property and once for sale of stolen property.
Hugo Gonzalez-Santa Cruz, also an illegal alien from Mexico, was charged with illegal re-entry after being found in the Travis County Jail following an arrest for assault causing bodily injury. He’s been removed from the U.S. twice, the last being in 2017, and has two DWI convictions.
These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including ICE, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the 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.
