Illegal alien admits to role in failed human smuggling attempt resulting in death

LAREDO, Texas - A 39-year-old Mexican national has pleaded guilty to harboring 32 illegal aliens in a stash house under dangerous conditions that resulted in one death, announced Acting U.S. Attorney John G.E. Marck.

Cruz Alberto de la Garza admitted he conspired with others to harbor illegal aliens at a stash house in Laredo and assisted in transporting them.

The investigation began Oct. 15, 2025, after two illegal aliens had been dropped off at an emergency room. One was pronounced deceased upon arrival. The medical examiner's report identified one cause of death as environment exposure with heat effects.

Later that day, law enforcement encountered a tractor-trailer at a Border Patrol checkpoint in Cotulla and discovered 30 illegal aliens crammed into the trailer's sleeper compartment.

The investigation revealed all had been housed in a white trailer on a ranch-style property used as a stash house. The trailer had extreme heat with little to no air conditioning, limited food and water and inadequate ventilation. There was no access to a toilet, and the aliens were forced to use a bucket. No one was permitted to leave.

De la Garza had instructed the aliens to get into the tractor trailer and initially drove them before parking and exiting the vehicle.

Sentencing is set for Sept. 1, before U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo. At that time, de la Garza faces up to life in prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tae W. Chon is prosecuting the case.

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, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.