A federal jury in San Antonio, Texas, indicted two men on Wednesday for crimes related to the June deaths of 53 migrants in an abandoned truck.
The truck driver, Homero Zamorano Jr., 46, and Christian Martinez, 28, both of Pasadena, Texas, were charged with transportation and conspiracy to transport migrants illegallyresulting in death or serious injury.
The truck was carrying more than 60 migrants locked in the trailer. Among the 53 deaths, 27 were from Mexico, 14 from Honduras, seven from Guatemala and two from El Salvador, with three people yet to be identified.
51 migrants found dead inside a truck in Texas
Both defendants remain in federal custody, no bondwhile awaiting trial.
If found guilty, the two men could be sentenced to life in prison, although the Public Ministry can also request the death penalty.
The incident took place on a remote San Antonio side street on June 27. Police found the truck near Lackland Air Force Base, where vehicles stop to unload migrants after illegally crossing the border.
The people in the trailer would be involved in an alleged migrant smuggling attempt for the United States
The migrants were locked in the trailer for several hours, with temperatures hovering around 40 degrees Celsius.
It was the largest tragedy involving migrants smuggled across the US-Mexico border.
US authorities detected nearly 240,000 migrants in May, an increase of a third from the same month in 2021.
Source: Observadora
