A Mexican national pleaded guilty to participating in a human-smuggling conspiracy that used a clandestine tunnel running beneath the U.S.-Mexico border into Texas.
Luis Carlos Davalos-Lopez, 29, pleaded guilty in El Paso on September 4, 2026, to one count of conspiracy to bring illegal aliens into the United States, the Department of Justice announced.
Davalos-Lopez faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not been scheduled.
Calls Referenced Fees Of Up To $30,000
Federal law enforcement discovered the tunnel between Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, and El Paso in January 2025.
According to the Justice Department, investigators intercepted telephone conversations between Davalos-Lopez and other individuals discussing the use of the tunnel to smuggle migrants into the United States.
The conversations included references to charging migrants upward of $30,000 to travel through the tunnel and enter the country without inspection. Davalos-Lopez discussed how many migrants were crossing through the passage and how much smugglers charged to use it, according to prosecutors.
Davalos-Lopez and his co-defendants were indicted in April 2025. The Mexican government subsequently transferred him to the United States under Mexico’s National Security Law.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva said the case showed that “smugglers will stop at nothing to move illegal aliens into the United States for profit.”
FBI Attributes Tunnel To CJNG
The FBI said the tunnel was constructed by the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, commonly known as CJNG, to support the smuggling of people, drugs, and firearms.
The United States has designated CJNG as a foreign terrorist organization.
Federal officials described the defendants as participants in a broader criminal enterprise that moved migrants and narcotics into the United States while trafficking firearms into Mexico.
Two of Davalos-Lopez’s co-defendants entered guilty pleas on August 27 in related cases involving drugs and firearms.
Maria Del Rosario Navarro-Sanchez, 40, pleaded guilty to methamphetamine distribution, firearms trafficking, human smuggling, and providing material support to CJNG.
According to court documents, Navarro-Sanchez used El Paso stash houses to store firearms and narcotics. She also admitted hiring smugglers to bring people into the United States illegally.
Gustavo Castro-Medina, 29, pleaded guilty to methamphetamine distribution and firearms-trafficking conspiracy charges. Prosecutors said he served as an intermediary in a planned $66,000 purchase of 20 AK-47-style weapons and two .50-caliber rifles from undercover agents.
The weapons were intended to be transported into Mexico and used to support narcotics trafficking, according to the Justice Department.
Federal And Mexican Agencies Joined Investigation
The FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with assistance from U.S. Border Patrol.
Mexico’s organized-crime prosecutors and ATF personnel assigned to the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City also assisted.
The case was supported by Joint Task Force Alpha, a Justice Department-led initiative targeting high-level human-smuggling and trafficking organizations operating across the Americas.
According to the Justice Department, the task force’s work has resulted in more than 482 domestic and international arrests, more than 433 U.S. convictions, and more than 369 significant jail sentences.
The prosecution is also part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative established under President Donald Trump’s January 2025 immigration executive order.
A federal district judge will determine Davalos-Lopez’s sentence after considering federal sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
Provided by Dallas Express
