Human Smuggling Coordinator Sentenced to Prison

PHOENIX, Ariz. - Mauricio Andrade-Garcia, 20, of Heber City, Utah, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Douglas L. Rayes to 10 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Andrade-Garcia pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens for Profit on March 14, 2024.

Andrade-Garcia recruited drivers through social media sites, including Snapchat, to pick up undocumented noncitizens (UNCs) in Southern Arizona and to transport them further into the United States for profit. He coordinated with his co-conspirators, providing them with instructions on how and where to pick up the UNCs. He shared GPS coordinates for the UNCs' locations and transportation routes designed to circumvent detection by law enforcement. Three of Andrade-Garcia's co-conspirators were arrested while transporting the UNCs and convicted in separate cases in CR-23-00482-TUC-JCH and CR-23-00108-TUC-RM.

Homeland Security Investigations-Casa Grande and Customs and Border Protection's United States Border Patrol-Tucson Sector conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Christine D. Keller, District of Arizona, Phoenix, handled the prosecution.

CASE NUMBER: CR-23-01024-PHX-DLR
RELEASE NUMBER: 2024-111_Andrade-Garcia

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