U.S. Department
of Justice
Mexican National Admits His Role in Transporting Illegal Aliens
LAKE CHARLES, La. – Ezequiel Vega-Solano, a 22-year old Mexican national, previously residing in Foley, Alabama, pleaded guilty today to illegal alien transportation, announced U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph. Vega-Solano, originally from Sonora, Mexico, was in the United States as a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient.
On June 26, 2019, Vega-Solano was transporting three illegal aliens on Interstate 10 near Lake Charles when a Louisiana State trooper pulled his vehicle over for a traffic violation. The trooper contacted U.S. Border Patrol in Lake Charles for assistance with the three passengers in the vehicle. When Border Patrol agents arrived, they spoke with Vega-Solano, the driver of the vehicle, who claimed that he and the passengers had traveled to Houston to attend an event.
Border Patrol agents determined that the three passengers in the vehicle were in the United States illegally and arrested Vega-Solano for alien smuggling. Vega-Solano later admitted to the agents that he was aware the passengers were in the United States illegally. He had agreed to transport two of them from Houston back to Foley for $1,500.
Ivan Velasquez-Lopez, one of the passengers in the vehicle, had traveled with Vega-Solano from Foley to Houston. Velasquez-Lopez, a citizen of Mexico, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James D. Cain Jr. on August 15, 2019, to re-entering the United States after previously being removed on three occasions. The other two passengers had no prior immigration history and were taken into custody for further immigration proceedings.
Judge Cain presided over the hearing today and scheduled sentencing for June 11, 2020. Vega-Solano faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. On June 27, 2019, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a notice terminating Vega-Solano’s DACA status.
United States Border Patrol and Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Ayo is prosecuting the case.
The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.
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