(The Center Square) – Several major arrests have led to convictions and sentencings for border crimes in Texas and Oklahoma.
In El Paso, Texas, a 20-year-old man was sentenced to 33 months in prison for smuggling illegal foreign nationals through a tunnel connecting Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, to El Paso. The case dates to 2024 when Homeland Security Investigations-El Paso and Border Patrol agents began investigating a cross-border tunnel smuggling operation. Intelligence revealed a sophisticated tunnel had been built under the Rio Grande River by members of La Nueva Empresa, an international drug cartel. The tunnel was equipped with electricity and ventilation and led to a box car with a trap door to move people inside and into the U.S.
Investigators uncovered that Oscar Ivan Carrillo and his co-conspirators used handheld tools to connect existing storm drains to the tunnel and guided illegal border crossers through them. Once they exited the storm drain they climbed up into a modified box truck through a trap door to avoid detection. Once inside, they were smuggled into Texas and throughout the U.S.
Carrillo was indicted last April and arrested last June. He pleaded guilty in November to conspiracy to use a border tunnel. His arrest led to other arrests of key members of LNE and the confiscation of tools and building materials used to construct the tunnel.
After the sentencing, HSI El Paso acting Special Agent in Charge Taekuk Cho said, “Criminals continue to innovate and exploit our border for profit, putting lives at risk and undermining our nation’s security. Through coordinated efforts and strategic partnerships, we are committed to identifying, investigating and dismantling these dangerous smuggling networks.”
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection El Paso Sector has a 100% prosecution rate and zero tolerance policy for border crimes under the Trump administration, The Center Square reported. The cases, including this one, were prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas. The office filed a record 11,542 border crime charges in 2025, The Center Square reported.
In Tulsa, an HSI-Dallas and HSI Tulsa-led investigation uncovered a nationwide counterfeit document scheme resulting in the sentencing of a Mexican couple who produced and sold thousands of fake IDs.
According to court documents, from August 2020 until February 2025 when they were arrested, they created and sold thousands of fraudulent immigration documents, including Social Security cards, lawful permanent resident cards, state driver’s licenses and foreign passports.
Karina Garcia-Salazar, 47, was sentenced to five years in prison and three years of supervised release for her role in the conspiracy. She was also ordered to forfeit $32,000 in cash and 45% of the proceeds from the sale of property used in the offenses. Her co-defendant, Jorge Augusto Prieto-Gamboa, 41, was sentenced in December to 15 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his role in the conspiracy.
The Social Security Administration, Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, Tulsa Police Department and Oklahoma Highway Patrol were also involved in the investigation. The U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma prosecuted the case.
The investigation found that the couple charged up to $150 per fake document and at least one document was sold to an individual who was later convicted of smuggling and trafficking narcotics into the U.S. A search warrant at their residence led to the discovery of 67 completed fake documents, more than 2,000 digital identification documents and $32,000 in cash, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Investigators also seized electronic devices, client ledgers and evidence of nationwide distribution, it said.
“Counterfeit IDs open the door to a range of criminal activity, from drug trafficking to identity theft. This sentencing sends a clear message: Those who manufacture and distribute fake documents will be found and prosecuted,” HSI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Travis Pickard said. “Our special agents and partners worked tirelessly to shut down this operation and protect communities nationwide.”
Their sentencings came as several hundred illegal foreign nationals are being prosecuted for operating 18-wheelers in violation of state and federal law, The Center Square reported. Those arrested were from 15 countries with criminal histories including convictions of assault and battery, soliciting prostitution, and DUI, authorities found.
