(The Center Square) – As the largest city closest to the border and a gateway hub for human and drug trafficking and crime linked to cartel and gang violence, Houston has been ground zero for some time for law enforcement dedicated to stopping it and saving victims.
The latest arrests are of Venezuelan and Guatemalan nationals in the country illegally.
In one case, two men were arrested for operating a sex trafficking ring in the Houston area: Venezuelan national Pedro Gonzales and Brandon Andrews, a U.S. citizen and known sex trafficker with a criminal history, Fox 26 first reported.
Gonzales has a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer request at the Harris County Jail. Andrews was out on bail for another human trafficking charge, according to court documents. Andrews has a criminal history, including being charged in February in Dallas County and posting bond in July only to be released and again allegedly engage in human trafficking in Harris County. He was caught, arrested and charged in October. He was again released and again allegedly engaged in trafficking, resulting in his recent arrest.
Both were arrested on child sex trafficking charges. Additional charges include sexual assault of a child (Gonzales) and promoting child sexual material (Andrews).
The victims were two teenage girls, 16 and 17 years old. The 17-year-old was reported missing by authorities in Bee County and remains missing.
The scheme involved Andrews allegedly targeting and contacting victims on Instagram to lure them to meet, authorities say. Once they met, the girls were allegedly trafficked, with their photos posted on an adult escort site advertising them as “special.”
Gonzales admitted to having sex with the 16-year-old, which in Texas does not constitute statutory rape. According to Texas penal code, the victim must be under age 14 for the alleged offender to be charged.
In another case, multiple charges were filed against a Guatemalan man illegally in the country who allegedly paid someone $1,400 to traffic a 16-year-old across state lines to Houston to meet him.
“Through their investigation, detectives gathered information showing the teen had traveled through eastern Idaho, to Utah, and eventually to Texas,” the Boise Police Department said.
Ruben Dario Visquerra Aguilar was first arrested and charged in October with harboring a runaway. In Idaho, he faces charges of first-degree kidnapping and human sex trafficking of a child.
This week, authorities in Harris County added charges of trafficking of a child and sexual assault of a child after a medical examination revealed the teenage girl is pregnant, Channel 2 NBC News Houston reported.
In this case, the victim was a runaway who was talking with someone online, according to the Boise Police Department.
Harris County authorities found messages between the victim and Aguilar on Snapchat, including sexually explicit ones, police said. Police were able to trace Aguilar’s IP address and ping the victim’s phone to find their location, arrest him and rescue her.
Aguilar is currently detained in Ada County Jail in Idaho with an ICE detainer. He illegally entered the country as an unaccompanied minor.
The majority of unaccompanied minors illegally entering the country are boys, according to federal data. The majority of unaccompanied minor illegal border crossers are sent to live with sponsors in Texas, The Center Square has reported.
Multiple reports also show that ICE and other federal agencies responsible for their care are incapable of monitoring unaccompanied minors after they are released into the U.S., The Center Square has reported.