Suspected migrant smuggler nabbed in Colorado; 11 held
May 30th, 2008 @ 12:02pm
by Associated Press

Police in the central Colorado town of Avon arrested an undocumented immigrant accused of transporting 11 other illegal migrants to seek work in Chicago.

Avon police pulled over a minivan operated by Esqaiel Casares Montiel, 22, of Mexico on Interstate 70 Thursday morning, police chief Brian Kozak said.

A witness had reported to police the van was crowded and its tires were nearly flat because of the weight it was carrying. Officers spotted two men lying beneath a rear seat of the van, designed to carry seven people, Kozak said. Montiel gave police a Mexican driver's license under his brother's name.

Montiel was arrested on suspicion of felony human smuggling and forgery, reckless endangerment and driving without a license, Kozak said. He was being held in Eagle County jail.

The passengers, all from Mexico, apparently met with Montiel in Phoenix and planned to look for jobs in Chicago. They were being detained in Glenwood Springs by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Kozak said.




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