SAN DIEGO – Nine people have been sentenced so far in smuggling incidents in Bird Rock and Sunset Cliffs, with three more people awaiting trial.
The longest term so far was three years in federal prison, handed down to Edgar Jimenez Macias, 34, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to bring in aliens for financial gain, according to court records.
Alex Ceja Guzman, 31, who goes by Alejandro, will be sentenced on Dec. 18 to conspiracy to commit offenses against the U.S. by bringing in undocumented aliens for financial gain. Guzman, who pleaded guilty, remains free on $40,000 bond.
Jose Pulido Jauregui and Ashley Maldonado Pulido, ages unavailable, will next appear in U.S. District Court on Jan. 26 to set a trial date. Both remain in federal prison without bail.
The investigating agencies — Homeland Security, U.S. Border Patrol, and the U.S. Coast Guard — seized $220,000 in cash and two boxes of ammunition.
“The Justice Department is committed to dismantling transnational human smuggling operations that prey on migrants and threaten our national security,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco after 11 people were indicted in July, 2024.
The group would use personal watercraft like jet skis and put migrants on them at night, whether or not they knew how to swim. This approach is favored because it allows for rapid drop-offs and quick evasion.
Some of the migrants reportedly paid between $7,000 and $16,000 to be smuggled into the United States.
“Every aspect of human smuggling — whether it be by land, sea, or aircraft — puts lives at risk,” said Christopher Davis, acting special agent in charge for Homeland Security San Diego, at the time.
Those who pleaded guilty and were sentenced to time served and released from prison include Tobias Burgara Gonzalez, 35; Junior Zavala Ramirez, 35; Manual Gonzalez Lopez, 27; Jesus Molina Flores, 21; Alexis Adrian Inda, 30; Mateo Alduenda Gutierrez, 27; Leonardo Espericut Simental, age unavailable.
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