A Florida man was sentenced to 72 months in jail on Friday for transporting a tractor-trailer loaded with illegal immigrants from Laredo, Texas, to San Antonio.
The case was investigated by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) with help from the US Border Patrol’s (USBP) Laredo Sector.
After completing his term, the suspect, Joseph Winslow, 54, of Fort Meade, Florida, was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. On March 5, Winslow entered a guilty plea.
According to court records, Winslow arrived at the Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 35, some 29 miles north of Laredo, on December 30. Authorities detected noncitizens inside the trailer he was driving after conducting an X-ray. In exchange for $10,000, Winslow agreed to transport the individuals.
Winslow is still being held in custody, awaiting transfer to a US Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Fawcett of the Southern District of Texas.
HSI is an ICE directorate and the primary investigative arm of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, particularly those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure that facilitates international trade, travel, and finance.
Over 7,100 special agents are deployed to 220 cities across the United States, as well as 80 abroad sites in 53 countries, making up HSI’s workforce of over 10,400 employees.
