El Paso Resident Pleads Guilty to Smuggling Drugged Children into U.S. from Mexico

EL PASO, Texas – Manuel Valenzuela, 35, a lawful permanent resident residing in El Paso, pleaded guilty in federal court to four charges related to his role in a scheme to smuggle children from Mexico into the United States.

According to court documents, members of an alien smuggling organization brought unaccompanied alien children between the ages of five and 13 illegally into the U.S. from Juarez, Mexico, sometimes using candy laced with THC to sedate them during smuggling events. The drivers and their coconspirator would then present U.S. documents to inspecting officers falsely claiming the documents belonged to the children, and that they were the parents of the children. Once inside the United States, the children were then transported to El Paso. During one smuggling event, one of the children was taken to a local hospital and diagnosed with THC poisoning.

Valenzuela conspired in the human smuggling scheme by picking up the children after they were smuggled into the country and providing payment to the drivers. Valenzuela was arrested on Aug. 30 with co-defendant Dianne Guadian, a U.S. citizen. Valenzuela, Guadian, and two additional co-defendants, Mexican nationals Susana Guadian and Daniel Guadian, were charged in a five-count indictment on Sept. 24.

Valenzuela pleaded guilty Nov. 6 to four of the counts: one count of conspiracy to transport aliens and three counts of aiding and abetting in the smuggling of aliens for profit. He faces a mandatory minimum of 11 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas made the announcement.

Homeland Security Investigations El Paso and U.S. Border Patrol led investigative efforts, with substantial assistance from HSI’s Human Smuggling Unit in Washington, D.C. and Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center International Interdiction Task Force.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Hines for the Western District of Texas and Trial Attorney Bethany Allen of the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case.

The investigation and indictment were supported by Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA). JTFA, a partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has been elevated and expanded by the Attorney General with a mandate to target cartels and transnational criminal organizations to eliminate human smuggling and trafficking networks operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and Colombia that impact public safety and the security of our borders. JTFA currently comprises detailees from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices along the northern and southern borders. Dedicated support is provided by numerous components of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, led by the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section (HRSP) and supported by the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the Office of Enforcement Operations, and the Office of International Affairs (OIA), among others. JTFA also relies on substantial law enforcement investment from DHS, the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and other partners. To date, JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 410 domestic and international arrests of leaders, organizers, and significant facilitators of alien smuggling; more than 355 U.S. convictions; more than 305 significant jail sentences imposed; and forfeitures of substantial assets.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).

###