ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment charging three New Mexico men with conspiracy to transport illegal aliens, with two of the defendants also facing charges of conspiracy to kill a witness who had provided information to law enforcement about the smuggling operation.
Wilfrido Saenz, 29, Ignacio Jaramillo, 22, and his brother Ismael Jaramillo, 35, all of New Mexico, were charged in connection with a scheme that ran from June 2021 through April 2024. Saenz and Ignacio Jaramillo were additionally charged with conspiracy to retaliate against a witness, resulting in her death in April 2024, after she had provided law enforcement with information about the alien transportation scheme.
Saenz and Ignacio Jaramillo also each faced two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Saenz had previously been convicted of alien smuggling, fraudulently obtaining a motor vehicle, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Ignacio Jaramillo had prior convictions in New Mexico for aggravated assault on a peace officer with a deadly weapon and aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer.
If convicted of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens, all three defendants face a maximum penalty of five years in prison. If convicted of conspiracy to retaliate against a witness, Saenz and Ignacio Jaramillo each face a maximum penalty of life in prison. The felon in possession charges carry a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
Justice Department officials said the case illustrated the extreme violence that human smuggling networks are willing to employ to protect their operations, noting that the defendants allegedly ordered the killing of a witness to prevent her from cooperating further with law enforcement.
The case was brought as part of Joint Task Force Alpha, the Justice Department’s lead effort combating human smuggling and trafficking by cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and the Homeland Security Task Force established under Executive Order 14159. To date, Joint Task Force Alpha’s work has resulted in more than 458 domestic and international arrests, more than 408 U.S. convictions, and more than 357 significant jail sentences.