October 15, 2007
The Charleston Gazette
W.Va. State Police arrest 6 illegal aliens on I-77

West Virginia State Police troopers arrested six illegal aliens Saturday evening after pulling a man over at the 35th Street Bridge in Charleston.

Tpr. M.J. Napier stopped a white 1998 Freightliner on Interstate 77 southbound about 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Napier said in an incident report Sunday. The truck, driven by Eduardo Lopez, 29, was hauling a flatbed trailer with two minivans and Florida license plates.

Lopez told Napier he did not have a drivers’ license and was an illegal alien, Napier said in the report. Napier noticed five other people in the cab. When questioned, each stated they also were unlawfully in the United States, Napier alleged.

The other men were: Miguel Penarte, 22, Carlos Ruiz, 28, Fermin Bautista, 22, Lucina Garcia, 25, and Raul Lopez, 24. The report did not offer any other information about the men.

State Police contacted immigration and customs enforcement. After speaking with an immigration official, troopers arrested all six men for unlawful presence and transported them to the South Central Regional Jail. Immigration and customs enforcement will take over the matter, according to the incident report.

None of the men were charged with any other offense.

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