Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers apprehended a man near the border in Del Rio, Texas, on Friday for his suspected involvement in smuggling a 5-year-old girl into the United States from Mexico.
According to Texas DPS, a trooper intercepted a Dodge pickup truck in Del Rio after receiving intelligence that a man was captured by border surveillance carrying a child across the Rio Grande.
Lt. Chris Olivarez, a spokesperson for Texas DPS, informed Fox News that the 5-year-old girl who was transported across the border was then transferred to another smuggler’s vehicle and taken to a hotel.
Troopers monitored the pickup truck until they eventually pulled it over and conducted a traffic stop.
During the stop, troopers discovered that the 5-year-old girl was from Mexico and had just been smuggled into the United States.
The trooper was able to match the girl’s image in surveillance footage to the girl in the pickup truck.
While questioning the girl in Spanish, the trooper pointed out the child’s distinctive bow, which was also visible in the recorded footage.
The girl’s mother, Dolores Lopez, was present in the truck during the traffic stop.
Texas DPS stated that the mother is a temporary resident of North Carolina and hails originally from Mexico.
Lopez informed troopers that she found a smuggling organization online and agreed to have her daughter smuggled into the United States for $8,000.
The smuggler, identified as Roman Ibarra Rojo from Mexico, was subsequently arrested. Rojo was charged with smuggling a minor under 18 years old.
Texas DPS reported that Rojo admitted he was promised $1,000 to smuggle the 5-year-old girl into the United States.
Olivarez mentioned that Rojo had been previously arrested in 2022 for smuggling activities.
Lopez and her daughter were handed over to the US Border Patrol with a recommendation to charge the mother with endangering her child.
Ultimately, the decision to prosecute the mother will rest with the district attorney.
