Thread: UT: Man sentenced for transporting illegal aliens

Man sentenced for transporting illegal aliens

By Kevin Jenkins
Published: November 04. 2010 3:00PM

ST. GEORGE — A Mexican national was sentenced to three years in federal prison this week for transporting people into the United States in hopes of helping them remain in the country illegally.

Juan Gonzalez-Gonzalez, 21, was arrested in April after he was alleged to be one of two drivers in a van transporting 16 illegal immigrants that was involved in a single-vehicle rollover about three miles north of Paragonah on Interstate 15.

The Utah Highway Patrol trooper who responded to the accident reported most of the 18 occupants could not communicate in English and that five of them were children younger than 12.

Six of the passengers were treated at Beaver Valley Hospital and the remainder went to Valley View Medical Center in Cedar City.

Gonzalez-Gonzalez pleaded guilty in August to a single count of transporting illegal aliens. His co-defendant, Miguel Dominguez-Guzman, pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to face a two-day trial in December.

Dominguez-Guzman’s attorney, Keith Barnes, said a status hearing in the case is slated Monday.

“There has been some discussion between the government and the defense. We need to determine if we’re going to go forward or ask for...a continuance for more time to prepare (for trial),â€

[quote]the other two children were released with their parents for “humanitarian reasons,â€

Man pleads guilty to transporting illegal aliens
Kevin Jenkins
Published: January 12. 2011 4:55AM - Last modified: January 12. 2011 8:03AM

ST. GEORGE - A Mexican national accused of transporting Mexican and Central American immigrants who were in the country illegally pleaded guilty Monday to a related charge in federal court.
Miguel Dominguez-Guzman, 34, was arrested after a van he was driving on Interstate 15 crashed April 29 in a single-vehicle rollover about three miles north of Paragonah.
Dominguez-Guzman and a co-defendant, Juan Gonzalez-Gonzalez, who is also a Mexican national, were accused of driving the 16 immigrant passengers, many of whom were injured and required hospitalization following the accident.
Gonzalez-Gonzalez pleaded guilty last year and was sentenced in November to three years in a federal prison in Long Beach, Calif., in an allowance for family visitation.
Dominguez-Guzman had initially pleaded not guilty and was scheduled to face trial in December.
His guilty plea means he will now be sentenced on the charge at a hearing scheduled April 4. After completing any prison time that may be ordered by the court, he will likely be returned to Mexico for a probationary period under a court order to not return to the United States without authorization.
According to court documents, Gonzalez-Gonzalez had driven the initial leg of the journey from Los Angeles. Dominguez-Guzman took over in Las Vegas at 2 a.m. after Gonzalez-Gonzalez reported he was tired.
The Utah Highway Patrol trooper who responded to the Paragonah accident scene reported most of the van's occupants could not communicate in English and that five of them were children younger than 12, some of whom were not accompanied by an adult.
Gonzalez-Gonzalez told immigration agents he had been transporting loads of illegal aliens for pay about once a month for the past year.
Some of the passengers told investigators they paid to be transported to locations including New Jersey, North Carolina and New York.
They also said Gonzalez-Gonzalez claimed to have a gun and threatened to use it following a dispute with the passengers over their luggage in Los Angeles. Dominguez-Guzman acknowledged he was aware of the threat.
The unaccompanied children were released into the custody of the Division of Child and Family Services with notice sent to the Mexican consulate and the other two children were released with their parents for "humanitarian reasons," according to court documents.
The remaining passengers were taken to St. George Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices for processing.

http://www.thespectrum.com/article/2011 ... /101120319

Driver who smuggled illegal immigrants sentenced

Kevin Jenkins
April 06. 2011 4:55AM - Last modified: April 06. 2011 7:06AM

ST. GEORGE - A Mexican national accused of driving illegal immigrants through Utah was sentenced Monday in federal court to 14 months in prison to be followed by deportation.

Miguel Dominguez-Guzman, 34, pleaded guilty in January to a charge of transporting illegal aliens following an incident April 29, 2010, in which he and a co-defendant were accused of being the drivers of a van that crashed north of Paragonah on Interstate 15.

Dominguez-Guzman and Juan Gonzalez-Gonzalez, also a Mexican national, were hospitalized along with the 16 Mexican and Guatemalan immigrant passengers at Beaver Valley Hospital and Valley View Medical Center, where they were treated and released following the single-vehicle rollover.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Bell said Dominguez-Guzman has been incarcerated for almost a year since the incident.

"So he doesn't have too much (time left)," Bell said.

Gonzalez-Gonzalez was sentenced last year to 36 months in federal prison, after which he will be deported.

Bell said Dominguez-Guzman received less time because investigators came to the conclusion Gonzalez-Gonzalez was the one primarily involved in organizing and executing the operation.

"Both were clearly involved," Bell said. "(But) Dominguez-Guzman was less culpable in the overall operation. Because of that, we negotiated and arrived at a lower sentence."

Bell said Gonzalez-Gonzalez was the one primarily involved in collecting the profits from the enterprise. Bell was also the initial driver when the group left Los Angeles, according to documents filed with the court.

Passengers told investigators they paid $500 to $750 to be transported to various locations throughout the country, including New Jersey, North Carolina and New York, according to the documents.

Gonzalez-Gonzalez told immigration agents he had been transporting loads of illegal aliens about once a month for the previous year and received $500 per person. Dominguez-Guzman maintained he was receiving the benefit of not having to pay to travel with the group but "he disclaimed any profit directly," Bell said.

Dominguez-Guzman took over driving responsibilities in Las Vegas at 2 a.m. the morning of the accident after Gonzalez-Gonzalez said he was tired, and was behind the wheel at the time of the rollover, according to the report.

Also in federal court Monday, Las Vegas resident Francisco Gomez-Talavera, 27, a foreign national, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to aiding the cultivation of a controlled substance.

The sentence stems from Gomez-Talavera's arrest last year close to a marijuana farming operation near Central, where he admitted he had dropped off supplies. Officers later counted 10,715 plants at the site.

"I think he's the last of my (marijuana) gardening cases," Bell said, referring to the 29 arrests made at 17 Southern Utah drug farming sites during 2010 and late 2009.

Bell and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Kohler obtained convictions in each of the cases.

http://www.thespectrum.com/article/2011 ... /104060318