A Laredo, Texas, man has been charged with human smuggling after authorities discovered a group of undocumented migrants hidden in a stolen tractor-trailer he was driving. Joseph Bridges is facing federal charges of bringing in and harboring aliens, according to court documents filed in the U.S. Southern District Court of Texas.
The arrest took place on August 19 in Encinal, Texas, a small town about 40 miles northeast of Laredo, along Interstate 35, a major route to San Antonio. A U.S. Border Patrol agent stopped the tractor-trailer, a white Freightliner, after noticing that the temporary license plate on the windshield was upside down.
Bridges allegedly claimed the trailer was empty, but a K-9 unit was called to the scene and detected the presence of people or narcotics inside the truck. A subsequent search of the sleeping area revealed 23 migrants, including one unaccompanied minor, hiding in the vehicle.
The migrants were found in the belly dump trailer, which was being hauled by the stolen tractor. The discovery was made after the K-9 unit alerted agents to the presence of people inside the truck. The migrants were likely attempting to travel north along the interstate, which is a common route for human smuggling operations.
Bridges is currently being held pending a court hearing, which has not yet been scheduled.
