In Guatemala, the police intercepted 42 citizens of the island who were traveling on a bus.
14ymedio, Havana, 24 March 2025 — Authorities in Eagle Pass confirmed the capture of Yonel V. Hernández, an elusive Cuban coyote who had been operating in Maverick County, Texas, since February 2024. According to the official report, the detainee was identified by Sergeant Rabago upon entering a local hotel last Friday.
Hernández had been identified as a coyote since February 2024, when he managed to evade authorities during a chase. On that occasion, he was transporting migrants in a Honda Pilot, which he hid in the bushes in the Las Brisas area of the border city.
On Friday, after the officer reported his whereabouts, the police department obtained an arrest warrant issued by Justice of the Peace Mingo Rodríguez. The presence of the officers took the Cuban by surprise, and he, wearing socks and shorts, tried unsuccessfully to escape via the emergency stairs.
In the room, agents found three migrants who were handed over to Border Patrol for deportation.
Hernández’s case joins those of several other Cubans who have been detained in Texas for migrant smuggling. In August, Enrique Nerey Valdivia, a truck driver transporting five undocumented immigrants, was found guilty of this crime.
Last March, two Cuban residents of the United States were charged with migrant smuggling by the Border Patrol after being captured in Las Cruces, New Mexico, while transporting 23 illegal migrants in a truck.
In August of last year, 26-year-old Nahara Candelaria Milán was brought to justice for migrant smuggling. A traffic violation in Eagle Pass, Texas, and her nervousness when asked for her documents gave the Cuban woman away, and she was inspected by authorities. She was carrying seven undocumented migrants in her truck.
Ag roup of Cubans detained in Guatemala; they were being transported by two coyotes. / Guatemalan National PoliceDespite the Trump administration’s immigration policy of strengthening border controls to detain and deport illegal immigrants, undocumented immigrants continue to cross the Rio Grande. Last Thursday, Eagle Pass police arrested two men, a Mexican and a Guatemalan, who used wetsuits and underwater propulsion devices to accomplish their mission. On March 10, Immigration and Customs Enforcement reported that 646 undocumented immigrants were detained from February 23 to March 2.
In Guatemala, police confirmed the capture of two coyotes transporting 43 Haitians and 42 Cubans on a bus. According to the official report, the migrants are headed to the United States.
National Civil Police spokesman César Mateo said that in addition to the Cubans and Haitians, they found three unaccompanied minors: one from Chile, one from Eritrea, and one from Uzbekistan.
Authorities notified the National Migration Institute. The Cubans were informed of the visa requirement for transit through the country. They can comply with this requirement at the facilities where they are being held.
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