21 Year Old Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Alien Smuggling Conspiracy

TUCSON, Ariz. - Obiel Anthony Ochoa-Renteria, 21, of Tempe, was sentenced last week by United States District Judge Rosemary Márquez to 24 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in an alien smuggling conspiracy. Ochoa-Renteria pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens for Profit on March 27, 2024.

In September 2022, agents from Homeland Security Investigations initiated an investigation into alien smuggling events being arranged through the social media app Instagram. During the course of the investigation, agents identified an Instagram account belonging to Ochoa-Renteria and discovered multiple occasions in which Ochoa-Renteria recruited participants and coordinated smuggling events between June and September 2022. Then on May 14, 2023, Ochoa-Renteria was stopped by a Department of Public Safety (DPS) trooper for speeding near Sierra Vista. During the traffic stop, DPS officers were assisted by Border Patrol agents who discovered two men dressed in camouflage in the trunk of Ochoa-Renteria's vehicle. Border Patrol agents determined that the men were Guatemalan and Mexican nationals who were illegally present in the United States. Ochoa-Renteria admitted that he was aware the men were in the United States illegally, and that he had agreed to transport them for $200 to $300 each.

Homeland Security Investigations and Custom's and Border Protections United States Border Patrol conducted the investigation in this case, with assistance from the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The United States Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.

CASE NUMBER: CR-23-00802-TUC-RM
RELEASE NUMBER: 2024-131_Ochoa-Renteria

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