Guatemalan smuggler pleads guilty, faces life in prison for role in 2022 Texas mass casualty event

A Guatemalan man pleaded guilty Thursday to conspiracy and aiding a mass casualty alien smuggling event in San Antonio, Texas, in 2022, that resulted in 53 deaths and 11 injuries. 

“Miranda-Orozco was an important organizer in a complex alien smuggling organization that prioritized profits and endangered people,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. 

“This case highlights that immigration offenses and alien smuggling have far-reaching impacts. Here, 53 people lost their lives. Targeting those involved in these dangerous crimes and aggressively prosecuting them remains one of the highest priorities of the Department. The Criminal Division and our partners will continue to ensure border security, the orderly administration of our immigration laws, and the protection provided by those laws.”

The incident involved a tractor trailer that was carrying 64 migrants, including six juveniles and a pregnant woman. 

“Sixty-four people suffered through sweltering Texas heat in the back of a smuggling trailer, leaving less than a dozen survivors clinging to life, all because smugglers like Miranda-Orozco decided profits were worth more than human lives,” said U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas. 

“This guilty plea is another step toward justice for every one of those 64 and their families, and it sends a clear message that no matter where you attempt to hide, this office, the greater Department of Justice, and our law enforcement partners across the government, will find you and hold you accountable.”

In August 2024, Miranda-Orozco was arrested in Guatemala, according to the DOJ press release, “pursuant to a U.S. request for his extradition. His arrest was part of a large-scale takedown during which Guatemalan law enforcement executed multiple search and arrest warrants across Guatemala. He was extradited from Guatemala in March 2025.”