KEY LARGO, Fla. \u2014 Newly released body camera video shows the arrest of a driver in the Florida Keys who investigators later identified as part of a violent human smuggling scheme.<\/p>\n
Authorities said the group kidnapped Cuban nationals, transported them to Key Largo, held them captive and threatened violence to force their families to pay money.<\/p>\n
The man seen in the video is Victor Rafael Arcia Albeja of Miami, the last of six people convicted in the scheme.<\/p>\n
The footage shows a Monroe County sheriff\u2019s deputy stopping Arcia Albeja in February 2024 after he allegedly ran a stop sign in the Florida Keys.<\/p>\n
\u201cHi, I\u2019m a deputy with the sheriff\u2019s office, why would you run that stop sign right in front of me?\u201d the deputy asks in the video.<\/p>\n
Deputies discovered Arcia Albeja did not have a driver\u2019s license and that the vehicle was unregistered.<\/p>\n
As the deputy attempted to take him into custody, Arcia Albeja and a passenger tried calling 911.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, no, no. Put the phone down,\u201d the deputy says before handcuffing him.<\/p>\n
Moments later, the deputy expresses disbelief at the situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s telling me he\u2019s gonna call 911 on me. Uh, I am 911,\u201d the deputy says.<\/p>\n
Arcia Albeja was eventually placed in the back of a patrol car. During a search of the vehicle, deputies found a Cuban passport.<\/p>\n
In May, law enforcement stopped another suspect on the Florida Turnpike, a development that investigators said helped break the case open.<\/p>\n
According to investigators, Arcia Albeja helped transport the victims from Cuba to South Florida. Prosecutors said the group then demanded $15,000 per victim at a safe house.<\/p>\n
Investigators said videos were sent to victims\u2019 families and friends showing the captives being abused and beaten with machetes.<\/p>\n
On the night of the traffic stop in the Keys, the deputy appeared to sense something was wrong.<\/p>\n
\u201cDude, something\u2019s weird with this,\u201d the deputy says in the video.<\/p>\n
Arcia Albeja is scheduled to be sentenced later this month and faces up to life in prison.<\/p>\n
\ud83c\udfe0 News From Your Neighborhood<\/p>\n
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