UNITED STATES ATTORNEY JOYCE WHITE VANCE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA
	FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE			CONTACT: STACY CRANE
	JULY 1, 2009			PHONE: (205) 244-2001
	www.usdoj.gov/usao/aln			FAX: (205) 244-2171

                                                        TEXAS MAN CHARGED IN ALIEN SMUGGLING CASE

            BIRMINGHAM, AL - United States Attorney Joyce White Vance of the Northern District of Alabama and United States  Immigration & Customs Enforcement announced today that  JESUS HELIODORO SANCHEZ has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Transporting Illegal Aliens in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1324.

            Sanchez, 36, a naturalized U.S. citizen living in Mesquite, Texas was charged in a one-count indictment filed today at U. S. District Court in Birmingham.  The single count indictment charges Sanchez with transporting illegal aliens in Tuscaloosa County on June 11, 2009.

            The maximum sentence for transporting illegal aliens is ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

            The Birmingham Police Department, the Alabama Department of Public Safety and United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated this case.  Assistant United States Attorney Michael W. Whisonant is prosecuting this case.

            Members of the public are reminded that the indictment contains only charges.  A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

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