Attor­ney Gen­er­al Ken Pax­ton Announces Take­down of Ille­gal Alien Smug­gling Oper­a­tion Pos­ing as a Health Care Provider

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced the arrest of Jesus Cantu-Trevino by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Texas Office of the Attorney General, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security in Edinburg, Texas, for Conspiracy to Commit Alien Smuggling.

Cantu-Trevino orchestrated a scheme using a fictitious assisted living facility as a front and Skyline EMS ambulances to illegally transport individuals past U.S. border checkpoints. The case was investigated by Sergeant Stephen Dishong, Investigative Auditor Audra Ruble, and Captain Stacey Overbay of Paxton's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, in cooperation with the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Liesel Roscher.

"To use our taxpayer-funded healthcare system as a cover for assisting illegal immigration is completely disgraceful," said Attorney General Paxton. "As shown in this instance, exploitation of public programs for illegal alien trafficking will be met with the full force of the law."

Since 2021, the MFCU has recovered more than $612 million in settlements, judgments, and restitution for Texas taxpayers. The MFCU receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $20,944,200 for fiscal year 2023. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $6,981,395, is funded by the State of Texas. For every dollar of state funding, the OAG's MFCU has recovered more than 49 dollars for taxpayers over the last 3 years.