Overview
- Manuel Valenzuela was sentenced to five years in federal prison on July 1, 2026 after admitting his role in a scheme to move unaccompanied children into the United States for profit.
- Valenzuela pleaded guilty on Nov. 10, 2025 to one count of conspiracy to transport aliens, three counts of bringing aliens for financial gain, and one count of aiding and abetting.
- Prosecutors say the group moved children aged about five to 13 from Juárez into the El Paso area between May and October 2024 and sometimes gave minors THC-laced candy to sedate them, with at least one child hospitalized for THC poisoning.
- Investigators recovered proof-of-life photos and cellphone evidence and say drivers used U.S. identity documents while falsely claiming parental relationships to pass children through a port of entry.
- The case was handled by HSI El Paso, U.S. Border Patrol and CBP task forces and prosecuted under Joint Task Force Alpha and Operation Take Back America, programs the DOJ says have produced hundreds of arrests and convictions targeting transnational smuggling networks.