Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Angel Ramon Lopez-Hernandez (36), a citizen of Mexico, has pleaded guilty to being paid to transport undocumented aliens to further their illegal presence in the United States. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
According to the plea agreement, on December 11, 2024, a trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol stopped a Ford Explorer on I-75 in Columbia County. Lopez-Hernandez was driving the vehicle, which contained four passengers. Because Lopez-Hernandez and the passengers did not appear to speak English and because the trooper suspected that Lopez-Hernandez was transporting aliens who were unlawfully present in the United States, he contacted U.S. Border Patrol agents for assistance. At the scene, the agents questioned Lopez-Hernandez and the passengers about their citizenship and immigration status. Lopez-Hernandez and two of the passengers stated that they were citizens of Mexico and that they were illegally present in the United States.
The vehicle’s odometer showed that the mileage at the time of the stop was 401,996. Database checks reflected that Lopez-Hernandez had purchased the vehicle on September 22, 2022, and that the mileage at the time of the purchase was 158,016, meaning that the vehicle had been driven more than 9,000 miles per month since Lopez-Hernandez had purchased it.
During later questioning, Lopez-Hernandez stated that he was being paid to transport the passengers and admitted that he had previously been paid to transport undocumented aliens, including from North Carolina to Florida. The passengers stated that they had entered the United States illegally and that they had paid for assistance in crossing the Mexican border and being transported to Florida, where they expected to find work.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Border Patrol and the Florida Highway Patrol. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Arnold B. Corsmeier.