FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 26, 2007

JOSE BENEDICTO JOSE-ZACARIAZ INDICTED FOR TRANSPORTING ILLEGAL ALIENS WITHIN THE UNITED STATES RESULTING IN DEATH

INDICTMENT IS RESULT OF CRASH ON I-70 NEAR EAGLE

DENVER – Troy A. Eid, United States Attorney for the District of Colorado, and Jeffrey Copp, Special Agent in Charge of the Denver office of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), announced that JOSE BENEDICTO JOSE-ZACARIAZ, age 27, was indicted by a federal grand jury today for transporting aliens illegally in the United States resulting in death. The charges stem from a crash on July 16th when a semi-truck crashed into a van that the defendant was allegedly driving. The van contained 9 people who were in the United States illegally. Three people died in the crash.

Counts one, two and three of the indictment allege that the defendant, JOSE-ZACARIAZ, knowingly transported illegal aliens within the United States, and as a result of his criminal conduct three people died. Counts four through nine allege that the defendant illegally transported six other aliens within the United States.

If convicted of transporting illegal aliens within the United States resulting in death, the defendant faces up to life in federal prison, and up to a $250,000 fine per count. If convicted of transportation of aliens within the United States the defendant faces not more than 5 years in federal prison, and up to a $250,000 fine.

“This is becoming an unwelcome trend in Colorado,” said US Attorney Troy Eid. “I want to thank US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Colorado State Patrol for their hard work on this case.”

“Time and again we witness how alien smugglers place people's lives in jeopardy so they can maximize their profits,” said Jeffrey Copp, special agent in charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Denver. “It's important that ICE work with the U.S. Attorney's office to prosecute these egregious cases, demonstrating to other would-be smugglers the high cost of such criminal acts.”

This case was investigated by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Colorado State Patrol. Numerous fire departments and EMT units from around Eagle also responded to the crash.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Roxane Perruso and Wyatt Angelo.

These charges are only allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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