SEATTLE Wash. (KPTV) – A 46-year-old Independence man was sentenced to 15 months in prison in U.S. District Court Monday evening for his role in illegally smuggling non-citizens into the country.
Following an extensive investigation featuring multiple government agencies, Jesus Ortiz-Plata was arrested in May 2024 in Everett, Wash., along with three non-citizens smuggled into the U.S. from Canada by railcar.
He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport certain aliens for profit in November 2024.
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“This defendant was a cog in a conspiracy that transported people into the U.S. from across the northern border in an extremely dangerous smuggling scheme loading people into freight cars on trains traveling from Canada into the U.S.,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa Gorman.
“These transnational smuggling groups charge thousands of dollars and risk the lives of those trying to reach …