APD: Man Stole Truck For Human Smuggling

Updated: Friday, 20 Apr 2012, 2:23 PM CDT

Police say they have charge a man for stealing trucks that were used to be used for human smuggling.

Police set up a surveillance team in the 12000 block of Research Blvd, an area plagued by truck thefts. Officers say they observed 26-year-old Jose L. Lopez-Monsivais and two other individuals steal a Chevrolet 1500 from the business parking lot.

Officers followed the suspects to an apartment located on Northgate, where the Chevrolet was parked. After the truck was reported stolen and it left the apartment complex, Officers conducted a traffic stop. The suspects led Officers on a chase that ended on Parmer Lane, where Lopez-Monsivais and the other two suspects fled into a wooded area.

Lopez-Monsivais was apprehended and taken into custody.
During an interview he confessed to operating the stolen truck. He stated he was hired to steal the trucks for the purpose of human smuggling at $1,000 per truck.

Lopez-Monsivais has been charged with engaging in organized criminal activity, a third degree felony.

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