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(Trends Wide Spanish) — A man pleaded guilty this Wednesday in federal court to participating in an accident that ended in the death of 13 people —12 of them undocumented immigrants— in March 2021 in California, and is now awaiting sentencing, reported in a statement from the US Department of Justice.
José Cruz Noguez pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to bring undocumented immigrants into the country and three counts of bringing undocumented immigrants for financial gain, the statement said.
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 9.
The accusation against Cruz Noguez arises from the accident that occurred on March 2, 2021, near Holtville, California, when a van carrying 25 people on board, most of them undocumented, collided with a truck. In the incident, 13 people died, 12 of them immigrants plus the driver.
“The detainee committed various acts in order to carry out the conspiracy, including attempting to recruit at least one criminal associate to drive a cargo vehicle containing up to 20 undocumented immigrants,” the statement said.
The Justice Department said that prior to the day of the accident, Cruz Noguez used his vehicle to scout the area where cargo vehicles would travel. He also pointed out that another person who remains a fugitive has also been charged in the case.
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