Cuban Aliens and Florida Man Sentenced for Their Roles in an International Alien Smuggling, Asylum Fraud, and Money Laundering Conspiracy

TAMPA, Fla. - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services played a critical role in an investigation that resulted in the sentencing of five Cuban aliens and one U.S. citizen for their roles in a vast conspiracy involving alien smuggling, asylum fraud, and money laundering. As part of the conspiracy, aliens were charged between $1,500 and $40,000 for their smuggling services, and co-conspirators sometimes chartered private planes to move groups of aliens. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida made the announcement.

"Today's sentencing is a clear warning to anyone seeking to profit by exploiting, abusing, or undermining America's legal immigration system," said USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow. "USCIS will bring to bear all law enforcement resources at its disposal to dismantle criminal operations threatening the American people."

According to court documents, Liannys Yaiselys Vega-Perez, 27; Miguel Martinez Vasconcelos, 31; Layra Libertad Treto Santos, 30; Luis Emmanuel Escalona-Marrero, 32; Walbis Pozo-Dutel, 32; and Emanuel Martinez Gonzalez, 29, conspired with others to operate an alien smuggling organization that encouraged or induced thousands of Cuban aliens to enter the U.S. The organization smuggled the Cuban aliens illegally across the southern border and used fraudulent Electronic System for Travel Authorization visa waivers to help people enter through ports of entry.

The defendants advertised their smuggling services and bogus immigration services across multiple social media platforms targeted toward Cuban nationals living in Cuba. The organization's advertised services included assisting Cubans with European citizenship to enter the U.S. on a European tourist visa waiver or ESTA, and it allegedly filed hundreds of fraudulent ESTA applications with U.S. Customs and Border Protection using fake addresses and false information. Cuban residents are not eligible for the ESTA program, and to obtain ESTAs, the alien smuggling organization made false representations that the applicants had not been present in Cuba since 2011. The defendants knew that Cubans are not eligible for the ESTA program and that the applicants were residing in Cuba at the time the ESTA applications were submitted. The defendants also operated a fraudulent immigration benefits business. Once in the United States, the organization assisted many aliens with filing fraudulent asylum paperwork to remain in the country.

Liannys Yaiselys Vega-Perez furthered the conspiracy by assisting in the logistics of moving aliens from their country of origin, including Cuba, into the United States, such as purchasing international and domestic flights for aliens to transport them toward, into, and throughout the United States. Vega-Perez was also the primary manager of the immigration benefits business and personally filed hundreds of fraudulent asylum applications. In addition, she and other defendants prepared, drafted, and submitted fraudulent asylum applications, immigrant visa applications, lawful permanent residence applications, and other applications for immigration benefits, in exchange for a fee.

Miguel Martinez Vasconcelos furthered the conspiracy by purchasing airline tickets to move individuals being smuggled from their country of origin towards the United States. He also provided funding to purchase charter flights to transport aliens to unlawfully enter the United States, with the purpose of growing and advancing the alien smuggling organization's operations. Vasconcelos personally transmitted at least $150,000 to companies operating outside the United States in furtherance of these unlawful activities.

Layra Libertad Treto Santos furthered the conspiracy by personally filing fraudulent asylum claims on behalf of the immigration fraud benefits business while she was an employee and manager. Treto Santos used the alien smuggling organization's services for herself and her family members and referred multiple Cuban nationals to the organization for smuggling services.

Luis Emmanuel Escalona-Marrero furthered the conspiracy by working with a co-conspirator in Mexico to ship Cuban passports to the United States. The purpose was to avoid having the passports confiscated by U.S. Border Patrol so that aliens could use the passports to apply for asylum once they entered the United States. He also formed a shell company that, along with other companies, was used to move illegal proceeds of smuggling through to conceal the funds' source and nature before distributing the funds back to himself and his co-conspirators.

Walbis Pozo-Dutel furthered the conspiracy by assisting with the logistics of transporting foreign nationals from their countries of origin, including Cuba, into the United States. For example, Pozo-Dutel provided foreign hotel and flight information to facilitate the aliens' travel along the route into the United States. Pozo-Dutel also instructed the individuals on what to say if questioned by CBP officers.

Emmanuel Martinez Gonzalez furthered the conspiracy by helping coordinate the logistics of transporting aliens. Martinez-Gonzalez worked with his paramour and codefendant, Marianny Lucia Lopez-Torres, to arrange the travel of aliens upon their arrival in the United States and accepted payments from those aliens as a part of the smuggling operation.

Vega-Perez, Martinez Vasconcelos, and others conspired to regularly move funds to companies operating outside of the United States and to other places outside the United States, such as by purchasing international flights for aliens to travel into the United States. Between July 2022 and November 2024, the alien smuggling organization spent more than $600,000 with a single airline for commercial flights.

Vega-Perez, Escalona-Marrero, and Treto Santos and others conspired to conduct financial transactions that were designed in whole or in part to conceal and disguise the nature, location, source, ownership, and control of proceeds of alien smuggling. The defendants set up multiple shell companies, through which illegal proceeds were moved before distributing the proceeds to the defendants. Between 2021 and 2025, more than $22 million was laundered by the defendants.

Liannys Yaiselys Vega-Perez was sentenced to four years in prison. Vega-Perez previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle aliens for financial gain, conspiracy to commit asylum fraud, conspiracy to commit international money laundering, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. Miguel Martinez Vasconcelos was sentenced to two years in prison. Martinez Vasconcelos previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle aliens for financial gain and conspiracy to commit international money laundering. Layra Libertad Treto Santos was sentenced to 30 months in prison. Treto Santos previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle aliens for financial gain, conspiracy to commit asylum fraud, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. Luis Emmanuel Escalona-Marrero was sentenced to 30 months in prison. Escalona-Marrero previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle aliens for financial gain and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. Walbis Pozo-Dutel was sentenced to two years in prison. Pozo-Dutel previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle aliens for financial gain. Emanuel Martinez Gonzalez was sentenced to two years in prison. Martinez Gonzalez previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle aliens for financial gain. Escalona-Marrero was ordered to forfeit $2.9M, Vasconcelos was ordered to forfeit $150,000, and Treto Santos was ordered to forfeit $95,000.

Twelve individuals were charged in a superseding indictment for their roles in the conspiracy. Yuniel Lima-Santos, 32, and Gisleivy Peralta Consuegra, 41, pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. Erik Ventura-Castro, 25, was sentenced on July 29 to 30 months in prison. Lazaro Alain Cabrera-Rodriguez, 29, was found guilty after trial in September and is awaiting sentencing. Marianny Lucia Lopez-Torres and Frandy Aragon-Diaz are at large.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations Tampa, U.S. Border Patrol Miami Sector, USCIS' Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate, and IRS Criminal Investigation led U.S. investigative efforts, with substantial assistance from HSI's Human Smuggling Unit in Washington, D.C., and CBP's National Targeting Center International Interdiction Task Force. The Justice Department's Office of International Affairs and authorities in the Cayman Islands provided valuable assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Courtney Derry for the Middle District of Florida and Trial Attorney Amanda Brown of the Criminal Division's Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case.

To report suspected immigration benefit fraud or abuse to USCIS, please use the USCIS Tip Form.

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