A 36-year-old woman, Sandra Perez of Fort Worth, has pleaded guilty to attempting to smuggle two Mexican children into the United States for financial gain, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
On August 8, Perez was driving an SUV with her three minor U.S. citizen children and two Mexican children. She falsely claimed the Mexican children were her own, presenting fraudulent Texas birth certificates and Social Security cards belonging to her other children.
When questioned by authorities, the Mexican children could not answer basic questions, prompting Perez to admit she was attempting to bring the children into the U.S. to deliver them to their mother in Fort Worth. She further admitted that she expected to be paid $5,000 per child for the delivery.
U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña accepted the plea and will schedule sentencing at a later date. Perez faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. She is currently permitted to remain on bond pending sentencing.
The investigation was conducted by Customs and Border Protection, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Jose Homero Ramirez prosecuting the case.
