Texas police arrest man for human smuggling after finding stash house with 46 migrants

The Texas Department of Public Safety arrested a 66-year-old Mexican national for allegedly trafficking 46 migrants who were found inside a stash house last week in Laredo, Texas. 

Manuel Gonzalez Rodriguez was already wanted by Border Patrol for an immigration violation when he was taken into custody for allegedly operating the stash house. 

Texas DPS officers noticed “suspicious activity” around 7:00 p.m. on Feb. 22 at the home in Laredo, a city on the U.S.-Mexico border in South Texas. 

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Officers entered the home and located 46 illegal immigrants, including 32 men and 14 women from Mexico and Guatemala. 

Images released by Texas DPS show windows covered by blankets, boarded up doors, and sleepings bags on the ground throughout the residence. 

Rodriguez will face federal charges for smuggling of persons. 

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Texas DPS located the stash house as part of Operation Lone Star, which was launched by Gov. Greg Abbott two years ago to address the surge of migrant encounters at the southern border. 

The operation led to more than 336,000 migrant apprehensions last year, as well as 23,000 arrests and the seizure of more than 354 million lethal doses of fentanyl.