San Diego-area ranch owner convicted in alien smuggling scheme
SAN DIEGO – A federal jury convicted a San Diego-area ranch owner Wednesday of conspiring to smuggle aliens from Mexico to the U.S. and held that the 76-acre ranch used by the smuggling ring to hide aliens should be forfeited to the federal government.
Kala D Rains, 47, of Potrero, was convicted of seven counts of conspiracy along with harboring and transporting illegal aliens. The charges stem from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Border Patrol.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office commends the agents from HSI and the U.S. Border Patrol who worked tirelessly over the two-year investigation to infiltrate, disrupt and dismantle this transnational criminal organization,” said U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy.
Rains is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 27, 2015. She faces a mandatory minimum sentence of three years and up to 10 years in prison for each count, along with a $250,000 fine. Rains’ co-defendants Caroline Haro Espindola, Jose Maria Partida-Esquivel and Alexander Flores previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy.
“While it’s highly unusual to find a ranch-style drop house linked to alien smuggling, we know that smugglers are motivated by greed, constantly seeking new methods and tactics to disguise their criminal activity,” said Joe Garcia, interim special agent in charge for HSI San Diego
According evidence presented during the trial, Rains colluded with several co-conspirators to house smuggled aliens at her ranch after they were brought across the border. An undercover operation originally alerted investigators about possible illicit activity on the sprawling property, which led to the ranch being placed under surveillance. Investigators say at least one of the alien groups housed at the ranch was held there for a week before being transported elsewhere.
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