Grand jury indicts 2 Texas men in fatal San Antonio migrant tractor-trailer case

SAN ANTONIO — A federal grand jury on Wednesday indicted two men accused in a fatal tractor-trailer incident in San Antonio that left 53 people dead and 11 injured, prosecutors said.

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According to KSAT-TV, the jury in San Antonio indicted Homero Zamorano Jr., 46, and Christian Martinez, 28, both of Pasadena, Texas, on counts of transporting and conspiring to transport migrants illegally resulting in death; and transporting and conspiring to transport migrants illegally resulting in serious injury.

According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas, if both men are found guilty of the first charge, they would face a maximum penalty of life in prison or the death penalty.

The defendants face up to 20 years in prison for the transporting resulting in serious bodily injury charges, the news release stated. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Both men remain in federal custody without bail pending trial, The Associated Press reported. Martinez’s attorney, David Shearer, declined to comment on the indictments. A message to Zamorano’s attorney was not immediately returned.

According to court documents, on June 27, Homeland Security Investigations responded to the scene of a human smuggling event in southwest San Antonio involving a tractor-trailer and 64 people suspected of entering the U.S. illegally.

HSI confirmed that 48 people at the scene had died, prosecutors said. Sixteen people were taken to area hospitals, where five died.

According to federal officials, Zamorano and Martinez discussed the smuggling incident from a cellphone belonging to Zamorano, who is also believed to have driven the trailer from Laredo to San Antonio, KSAT reported.

According to the AP, 10 migrants died in 2017 after being trapped inside a truck that was parked at a Walmart in San Antonio. In 2003, 19 migrants were found in a sweltering truck southeast of the South Texas city.

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Photos: Dozens of suspected migrants found dead inside big-rig in San Antonio An ambulance leaves the scene where police said dozens of people were found dead in a semitrailer in a remote area in southwestern San Antonio, Monday, June 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

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