Manuel Silva Jr.
US Border Patrol agents arrested a Laredo man last week after a traffic stop revealed he was transporting ten undocumented immigrants.
Encinal police say they were patrolling the interstate Thursday, April 4, when they spotted a GMC pickup truck traveling above the posted speed limit. When the officer approached the vehicle, he noticed several individuals attempting to hide themselves in the back seat. Another individual was discovered squatting on the floorboard between a passenger’s legs.
The driver, identified as 50-year-old Manuel Silva Jr., of Laredo, was immediately arrested as officers noted signs indicative of human smuggling.
La Salle County Precinct 2 Constable Rene Maldonado and agents from the Laredo Border Patrol Unit assisted in the traffic stop.
It was determined that the ten individuals in the truck were undocumented immigrants; the USBP took custody of the all vehicle occupants, including Silva, and have taken over investigation of the case.
Emergency dispatch personnel later confirmed the vehicle had been reported stolen in Houston.
