Human Smuggler Gets Prison Term in Deaths of 11 Illegal Immigrants

In June 2024, the Department of Justice proposed to Congress a law that would increase penalties for the ’most prolific and dangerous’ human smugglers.

Chinese illegal immigrants wait while a Border Patrol agent provides medical care to a woman in a group of illegal immigrants near Eagle Pass, Texas, on May 20, 2022. Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times

A Dominican national involved in a human smuggling operation that led to the death of nearly a dozen illegal aliens was sentenced to a prison term of nine years.

The sentencing was issued Monday against Fermin Montilla, 45, who led the smuggling venture, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a Feb. 10 statement.