Federal grand jury indicts 11 in alleged train smuggling that killed 7 in Texas container

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - A federal grand jury in Del Rio returned an indictment this week charging 11 people in connection with an attempted alien smuggling operation that authorities say resulted in seven people being found dead inside a Conex shipping container in May.

The case is part of a Homeland Security Task Force investigation, according to the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs.

What authorities allege happened according to the indictment, the defendants and others operated a human smuggling organization from at least April 2023 through May 12, 2026. Prosecutors allege the organization used cargo trains to move people farther into the United States after they crossed illegally from Mexico.

The indictment alleges that near the end of April 2026 the organization began facilitating the smuggling of at least seven people from Acuña, Mexico, into Del Rio. After crossing them into the Del Rio area, authorities say the group transported the seven to an area near Union Pacific train tracks.

From about 1:18 p.m. to 1:25 p.m. May 9, while a Union Pacific train was stationary, smugglers allegedly used red bolt cutters to cut a lock off a shipping container door, loaded the group inside, and shut the door, the indictment states.

The container was stacked on another container and had no ventilation or cooling system, according to the indictment. Investigators cited outside temperatures ranging from 88 to 92 degrees that day, authorities said.

In total, seven people — including one 14-year-old child — were loaded into the container, which was secured from the outside and could not be opened from inside, the indictment alleges.

The train then departed Del Rio and traveled east toward San Antonio along U.S. Highway 90, according to the indictment. When the train arrived in San Antonio, smugglers opened the container and discovered the group in peril, then fled, the indictment alleges. Authorities say the smugglers left one of the deceased near the railroad tracks and the others inside the container.

The next day, May 10, the train departed south along its route to Laredo, according to the indictment.

A Union Pacific rail yard worker in Laredo saw a leg sticking out from the container, authorities said. Six people were found dead inside the container, and later a seventh was found dead and abandoned near railroad tracks in San Antonio, according to the Justice Department.

Authorities said four of the deceased were Mexican nationals and three were Honduran nationals. One was a 14-year-old child. Identities include: Denis Anariba, 24, of Honduras, Nelson Davian Portillo, 14, of Honduras and Carlos Alvarez, 45, of Mexico.

The investigation also found that at least one person messaged a loved one, pleading for help, according to the Justice Department.

All 11 defendants are charged with one count of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death and one count of aiding and abetting transport of illegal aliens resulting in death, authorities said. If convicted, each faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.

A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The defendants named in the indictment are:

Karina Garcia, 37, of Del Rio, Texas Edson Alejandro Perez, 18, of Del Rio Seferino Huerta-Casillas, 35, of Mexico Jonas Ulloa-Aguilera, 25, of Honduras Mayra Alejandra Huerta, 32, of Del Rio Maria Norma Neri de Moran, 56, of Mexico Damian Huerta Analucas, 55, of Mexico Rosario Cristal Lopez-Saldana, 26, of Mexico Eric Hernandez, 40, of Eagle Pass, Texas Franklin Williams Ayala Aguilera, 30, of Honduras Pascual Raymundo Loarca, 34, of Guatemala

Mayra Alejandra Huerta was arrested May 12 in Del Rio and initially charged with one count of harboring illegal aliens, according to the Justice Department. She has remained in federal custody and now faces two charges in the indictment.

Last week, eight other defendants were arrested during a multiday operation across central and south Texas, authorities said. Two defendants — Karina Garcia and Seferino Huerta-Casillas — remain at large. The photo in this article was provided by the Department of Justice.

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