Thread: CO:Two held on charges of human smuggling; FBI, ICE join pro

Wheat Ridge - Two men have been arrested on charges of human smuggling after Wheat Ridge police discovered nine people in their van.

Bernardino Fuentes-Espinoza, 35, and Guadelupe Alvarez, 42, attempted to pass a counterfeit $100 bill about 9 p.m. Monday at a convenience store at West 32nd Avenue and Youngfield Street, police Cmdr. Jim Lorentz said.

When police contacted them, two of the van passengers fled, Lorentz said. The remaining passengers - a woman and six men ranging in age from 18 to 38 - told police they had paid up to $2,500 each to be transported illegally into the United States from Mexico.

Fuentes-Espinoza and Alvarez were taken to the Jefferson County Jail. Seven of the passengers were
Bernardino Fuentes-Espinoza (Special to The Post)assisted by the Colorado Network to End Human Trafficking, which is sponsored by the Colorado Department of Public Safety's criminal justice division.

Joining Wheat Ridge police in the ongoing investigation are the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Jefferson County district attorney's office.

Staff writer Ann Schrader can be reached at 303-278-3217 or aschrader@denverpost.com.

http://origin.denverpost.com/news/ci_6399541

OK, drugs, crime, disease and now counterfeit money????