Man pleads guilty to smuggling migrants into California through sewer pipes

A 20-year-old Mexico resident has pleaded guilty to smuggling seven migrants into the U.S. illegally through sewer pipes in southern California, federal prosecutors say. 

Kevin Noe Campos Villa now faces a potential 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine following his arrest in January, during which several of the migrants he was escorting had to be rescued from the Tijuana River by San Diego lifeguards, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California. 

Prosecutors say Campos, of Tijuana, was taken into custody by the Border Patrol on Jan. 22 about two miles west of the San Ysidro Port of Entry during heavy rainfall.  

“Sewer tubes between the United States and Mexico have grates to prevent individuals from illegally entering the United States. During heavy rain, the grates are opened to let water flow through the sewer tubes without damaging the grates,” the attorney’s office said. “Due to heavy rain that was occurring in the area at the time, the grates were open and Campos used the opportunity to smuggle the unauthorized immigrants into the United States.” 

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“According to court records, two of the unauthorized immigrants who were rescued stated that they feared for their lives when crossing the river because they did not know how to swim,” the office added. “One stated that he was swept away by the river’s current and was able to grab and hold onto a tree branch until his rescue.” 

Prosecutors say Campos told investigators he agreed to guide the group of migrants in exchange for $6,000 and that he has been working for other smugglers by helping build ladders to take people over the U.S.-Mexico border fence. 

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“This is an important reminder that safety is of little concern to transnational criminal organizations,” Chief Patrol Agent Patricia McGurk-Daniel said in a statement. “U.S. Border Patrol agents will continue to target human smugglers and deliver consequences to those who violate the laws of our nation.” 

Campos has been charged with Bringing in Illegal Aliens at a Place other than a Designated Port of Entry and will be sentenced on June 17.