ALABAMA WOMAN AND MEXICAN NATIONAL PLEAD GUILTY TO CONSPIRACY TO TRANSPORT ILLEGAL ALIENS FOR PROFIT

Kelly Denise Hernandez, age 38, of Birmingham, Alabama, and Enrique Garcia-Gonzalez, age 27, an illegal alien from Mexico, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles to conspiracy to transport illegal aliens for profit, announced U.S. Attorney Kurt L. Wall.

According to admissions made during their pleas, Hernandez, Garcia-Gonzalez, and another co-conspirator agreed to transport and transported illegal aliens who had been smuggled into the United States from Mexico. Specifically, Hernandez and Garcia-Gonzalez traveled from Birmingham, Alabama to Houston, Texas where they and another co-conspirator intended to charge each illegal alien a monetary fee for unlawful transportation within the United States. Law enforcement apprehended Hernandez and Garcia-Gonzalez on their way back to Birmingham, Alabama in Denham Springs, Louisiana.

If convicted, Hernandez and Garcia-Gonzalez face up to ten years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and supervised release. Garcia-Gonzalez is also subject to removal or deportation from the United States upon completing his sentence.

U.S. Attorney Kurt L. Wall praised the work of the U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and U.S. Department of Homeland Security in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Lyman E. Thornton III and Special Assistant United States Attorney Allen L. Ross lead the prosecution.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.