Repeat alien smuggler sentenced in south Texas to 5 years in federal prison

LAREDO, Texas — A Mexican national was sentenced Wednesday to five years in federal prison for transporting illegal aliens for profit.

This sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas. This investigation was conducted by the following agencies:  U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with the assistance of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Border Patrol, Texas National Guard Air Unit, and the FBI.

Daniel Mata, 28, of Rio Bravo, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Judge George Kazen to 60 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court noted Mata’s previous convictions for similar conduct and admonished him, stating:  “You’ve packed a lot crime into a short amount of time…you’re not a career criminal, but a career-and-a-half criminal!” Mata apologized to CBP and their families.  He pleaded guilty to the charges Feb. 28, 2014.

According to court documents, on Feb. 28, CBP learned of illegal aliens that had entered the United States via a resident’s backyard in Rio Bravo. Border Patrol agents responded and noticed a suspicious Grand Marquis vehicle in the area and followed it to a local convenience store.

Mata was driving the vehicle. He exited the car and entered the store. Agents continued surveillance of the vehicle and determined the four passengers in the car were illegal aliens from Mexico. The aliens admitted paying $5,000 as a transfer fee and identified Mata as their driver.

Agents entered the store searching for Mata. Inside, Mata fought with the agents and fled the scene. He ran outside the store, pursued by Border Patrol agents on foot and through air surveillance by the Texas National Guard Air Unit. After an exhaustive pursuit, he was eventually apprehended.

Mata will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sanjeev Bhasker, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted this case.