A truck driver is facing human smuggling charges after he was caught transporting 35 illegal immigrants in South Texas.
The driver, Muchiri Rayheed Rhodes, was arrested when a border patrol agent found Guatamalan and Mexican immigrants hiding in his trailer during an inspection at a border checkpoint, 80 miles from the border.
According to official court documents, Rhodes told agents that his wallet was stolen by a woman he spent the night with in McAllen, Texas, and in order to make enough money to get home, he took a job from a man offering him $200 to transport a trailer with an unknown load.
His story, however, doesn’t match up with the claims of some of the immigrants found aboard the trailer. They claimed that they saw Rhodes helping load people onto the trailer from the side of the road.
Border patrol agents immediately arrested Rhodes and turned him over to Homeland Security Investigations. When he appeared in front of Judge Jason Libby, he was order to be held without bail. Several immigrants are also being temporarily held in order to be used as witnesses.
