Frio County, TX - Last month’s dramatic rescue of nearly 40 undocumented immigrants in the back of a sweltering 18-wheeler was captured by...
Frio County, TX - Last month’s dramatic rescue of nearly 40 undocumented immigrants in the back of a sweltering 18-wheeler was captured by the body cameras worn by Frio County sheriff’s deputies.Deputy Aaron Ramirez and Sgt. Jerry Reyna were the first to arrive Sept. 18 at a truck stop north of Pearsall after a caller reported to 911 about seeing a driver allegedly telling the people to get out, only to tell them to get back in the trailer. They said it had no refrigeration, only a small door in the back.“I could only see arms sticking out of it,” Ramirez said. Reyna went to speak to the driver who the witnesses had pointed out. “The driver was just standing there, not a care in the world,” Reyna said. Yet on Wednesday, Drew Christopher Potter, 33, of Watuga, outside Fort Worth, was indicted by a federal grand jury on four counts of conspiracy to smuggle and transport 39 undocumented men and women, including four minors from Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico.If convicted on each count, Potter faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a maximum $250,000 fine. Reyna said Potter told him that he’d been paid to drive the truck to San Antonio, but he had no knowledge of any people inside the rig.But Reyna told Potter, “We have witnesses.” Mark Dawson, acting special agent of Homeland Security Investigations, said,“HSI is dedicated to working closely with its law enforcement partners in pursuit of identifying, arresting and prosecuting individuals involved in human smuggling.” Read more here Less
