“Socalj” for Borderland Beat
 |
Customs and Border Protection officer Manuel Perez, Jr. was arrested in El Paso, Texas on criminal charges related to his alleged involvement in a conspiracy to smuggle undocumented noncitizens for financial gain and alleged drug trafficking activity.
Perez Jr. is charged with one count of conspiracy to bring aliens to the United States for financial gain, three counts of bringing aliens to the United States for financial gain, and one count of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
 |
According to court documents, between on or about Dec. 21, 2023 and Feb. 5, 2025, Manuel Perez Jr., 32, of El Paso, allegedly smuggled and attempted to smuggle undocumented noncitizens into the United States for commercial advantage and private financial gain. The indictment alleges that, in multiple instances, Perez Jr. admitted a vehicle driven by an undocumented non citizen at the Paso Del Norte Port of Entry in El Paso as part of human smuggling operations.
Perez Jr. allegedly conspired to possess a substance containing at least 5 kilograms of cocaine from on or about Nov. 1, 2019 through and including Feb. 5, 2025, to distribute throughout Texas, Louisiana, North Carolina and elsewhere.
Sources DOJ, FitFamElPaso