A 42-year-old Sierra Leonean, Abdul Karim Conteh, has been arrested in Tijuana, Mexico on suspicion of leading a notorious human smuggling organisation and is expected to be extradited to the United States to face charges.
The US Department of Justice (DoJ) said in a Thursday statement that an indictment was unsealed on Wednesday containing criminal charges against Conteh, the alleged leader of a human smuggling organisation responsible for unlawfully bringing thousands of migrants into the United States.
“Along with the organisation, the defendant, who was arrested in Mexico at the request of the United States, has also been designated for financial sanctions by the US Department of the Treasury.
“These developments were made possible through extensive bilateral coordination and cooperation efforts between US and Mexican law enforcement authorities,” the DoJ said.
The DoJ said Conteh was arrested on July 11 in Tijuana, Mexico and the US is pursuing his extradition on federal charges stemming from his alleged actions in leading the human smuggling organisation.
His Mexican wife, Veronica Roblero Pivaral, 25, remains at large.
According to the indictment, Conteh’s organisation allegedly smuggled thousands of migrants to the United States through Mexico.
These smuggled migrants originated from countries around the world, including Iran, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Somalia, Cameroon, Senegal, Mauritania, Ethiopia, Egypt, and others.
The migrants paid smuggling fees, often tens of thousands of dollars, to be transported through various countries such as Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala, on the way to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Conteh allegedly coordinated with Roblero and co-conspirators throughout Mexico and other countries to facilitate the global transportation of migrants into and through Mexico to the US border.
Conteh then allegedly oversaw the migrants’ unlawful entry into the United States by various surreptitious and unlawful means, including the use of ladders and tunnels.
Conteh, Roblero, and others are charged with conspiracy to smuggle migrants into the United States, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
Conteh is also charged with the unlawful smuggling of migrants for financial gain, which carries a mandatory minimum of three years in prison for the first two violations.
Additional violations carry a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
US Attorney General, Merrick B. Garland said, “In coordination with our law enforcement partners, the Justice Department has worked relentlessly to target and disrupt the unlawful, transnational human smuggling operations that endanger migrants and threaten our national security.
“We allege Abdul Karim Conteh and his organisation smuggled thousands of migrants from more than a dozen different countries through Mexico into the United States.
“He has been arrested for his alleged role in this prolific, exploitive smuggling operation by Mexican authorities, and the Justice Department will ensure that he is held accountable in an American courtroom.”