Federal Officials Announce Takedown of Group Suspected of Smuggling 20,000 Illegal Immigrants

Acting U.S. Attorney Joe McNally, of the Central District of California, announces arrests of a transnational criminal organization that allegedly smuggled approximately 20,000 illegal immigrants from Guatemala to the United States, in Los Angeles on March 3, 2025. Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP

LOS ANGELES—Federal law enforcement in Los Angeles March 3 announced charges against four people suspected of smuggling about 20,000 illegal immigrants from Guatemala to the United States, including seven who died in a car crash in 2023.

Officials said the operators of the so-called Turko Organization—Eduardo Domingo “Turko” Renoj-Matul, Cristobal Mejia-Chaj, Helmer Obispo-Hernandez, and Jose Paxtor-Oxlaj—were charged in Los Angeles federal court last week.