Western District of Texas U.S. Attorney’s Office Adds 270 New Immigration Cases

SAN ANTONIO - United States Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas announced today that federal prosecutors in the district filed 270 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from Sept. 19 through 25. Significant cases include U.S. citizens arrested on human smuggling charges, illegal alien sex offenders, and numerous illegal aliens arrested across the district with multiple DWI convictions on their record.

Among the new cases, two U.S. citizens, Jesus Ruiz Murillo aka Gabriella Ruiz Murillo, and Sebastian Ruiz, were arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents near Dilley on Monday. USBP agents conducted an immigration inspection on the vehicle while it was stopped at a gas station, during which the agents allegedly observed feet protruding from underneath a sun shield on the floor of the vehicle. A criminal complaint alleges that the agents discovered a total of six individuals-all determined to be Mexican nationals-hidden in the rear seats of the SUV driven by Ruiz Murillo. Ruiz Murillo and Sebastian Ruiz are siblings and were allegedly transporting the six illegal aliens from Crystal City to a stash house in San Antonio, anticipating a payment of $1,500 in cash per illegal alien. Further investigation revealed that at least four of the illegal aliens were paying $6,500 to $7,000 each to be smuggled into the United States. Ruiz and Ruiz Murillo are both charged with transportation of illegal aliens for financial gain.

Mexican national Arturo Barrios-Medina was found in the Bexar County Jail after his Sept. 15 arrest on a warrant out of Florida based on a sex offender registration violation. Barrios-Medina was turned over to ICE custody on Sept. 19 and charged with illegal re-entry. In August 2004, Barrios-Medina was convicted in Florida for providing obscene material to minors and possession of child pornography. He was sentenced to one year and one day of confinement and removed from the U.S. on Oct. 7, 2004.

In El Paso, U.S. citizen Edmundo Vizcaya was arrested on human smuggling charges after agents allegedly observed six individuals wearing yellow construction vests attempting to conceal themselves inside Vizcaya's vehicle. A criminal complaint alleges that the individuals admitted to being illegal aliens and Vizcaya stated he would be paid $500 per alien he transported to a drop-off location he had coordinated with another smuggler. In 2024 in El Paso County, Vizcaya was given deferred adjudication for aggravated robbery and possession of a prohibited weapon.

Mexican national Jesus Armando Ramirez-Hernandez was charged with illegal re-entry, having been previously removed from the U.S. two times, the last being in 2023 through San Ysidro, California. Ramirez-Hernandez is a convicted felon with convictions for conspiracy to transport aliens, possession of a controlled substance, assault causing bodily injury to a family member and aggravated sexual assault of a child.

Jordan Lorenzo Zavala-Mendez, also a Mexican national and convicted felon, was arrested and charged with illegal re-entry. Zavala was just removed from the U.S. to Mexico on Feb. 12 after serving a one-year prison sentence for illegal re-entry. Zavala-Mendez has also been convicted twice for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and twice for possession of a controlled substance.

Juan Hernandez-Cotzojay, a Guatemalan national with three prior removals, was found and arrested approximately 13 miles west of the Tornillo Port of Entry. His most recent removal was on Aug. 14 and his criminal record includes two DWI convictions in Houston.

Mexican national Hector Martinez Aranda was charged with illegal re-entry after he was encountered by ICE at the Travis County Jail. He had been arrested on Sept. 19 for driving without a license and with an open container. Martinez Aranda has been convicted three times for DWI charges and was convicted for improper entry by an alien in Del Rio in 2011. He has been removed from the U.S. to Mexico twice.

Also taken into ICE custody out of the Travis County Jail, Mexican national Pablo Torres Mendieta had been arrested for his second DWI charge, along with charges for bribery and fleeing a police officer. Torres Mendieta's first DWI conviction was in 1998. He was also convicted that year for an immigration violation and was subsequently deported. He's now federally charged with illegal re-entry.

Jose Ramirez-Betancourt, also a Mexican national, was taken into ICE custody after he was encountered at the Williamson County Jail. He was convicted on Sept. 11 for a DWI and assault causing bodily injury. Additionally, Ramirez-Betancourt's criminal record includes two previous convictions for driving while impaired in North Carolina.

In Del Rio, Mexican national Jose Manuel Ibarra-Gamez was arrested and charged with illegal re-entry less than four weeks after he was removed from the U.S. for the sixth time. Ibarra-Gamez has been convicted three times for illegal re-entry and twice for DWI charges.

These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including ICE, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas comprises 68 counties located in the central and western areas of Texas, encompasses nearly 93,000 square miles and an estimated population of 7.6 million people. The district includes three of the five largest cities in Texas-San Antonio, Austin and El Paso-and shares 660 miles of common border with the Republic of Mexico.

These cases are 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. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

###