A federal jury convicted Juan Gomez Montiel, 32, of El Paso for coordinating an alien smuggling operation that brought individuals, including an unaccompanied minor, from Mexico into the United States through southern New Mexico and Texas, according to a May 27 announcement.
Court documents and evidence presented at trial showed that in March 2024, Gomez Montiel arranged for a material witness to be smuggled from Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, into the United States for $2,200. He coordinated with a Juárez-based smuggler known as “Polo,” who transported the witness to a stash house in Juárez before guiding them through a hole cut in the border fence near Cristo Rey in Sunland Park, New Mexico. After crossing into the United States on April 5, 2024, with assistance from a foot guide, the witness was taken to a tire shop in El Paso where Gomez Montiel met them and paid the guide.
Trial evidence also indicated that Gomez Montiel later contacted the witness seeking payment of an outstanding $500 fee. Additional testimony established that he coordinated transportation of an unaccompanied minor from El Paso to Albuquerque using a driver who was actually an undercover Texas Department of Public Safety agent.
Gomez Montiel was found guilty of conspiracy to bring in and transport illegal aliens, bringing in an illegal alien for financial gain, and transporting an illegal alien. The court ordered him detained pending sentencing; he faces between three and ten years in prison.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan McRae of Homeland Security Investigations El Paso announced the conviction. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations El Paso with support from U.S. Border Patrol, Texas Department of Public Safety, El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, and Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Randy Castellano and Devon Aragon-Martinez are prosecuting.
The investigation was supported by Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), which targets leaders involved in human smuggling across North America and has resulted in hundreds of arrests since its inception. This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative under Executive Order 14159 focused on eliminating criminal cartels and trafficking rings operating within or affecting the United States.
