Arizona Human-Smuggling Kingpin Sentenced to 6 Years

A Phoenix man, Jesus Alexandro Sanchez-Armenta, has been sentenced to six years in prison after admitting to conspiracy to transport people into the United States for profit. On July 17, U.S. District Judge Diane Humetewa handed down the 72-month prison term, followed by five years of probation, said Justice Department spokesman Zach Stoebe.

Court documents reveal Sanchez-Armenta organized a human smuggling operation with at least four collaborators: Reggie Arnez Ward, Alexandra Yolanda Olvera, Clarissa Lizbeth Gutierrez, and Miguel Angel Hernandez. The group employed various tactics, such as using night-vision goggles to evade Border Patrol agents. Sanchez-Armenta facilitated these operations by coordinating trips and covering fuel costs.

This sentencing is part of broader efforts by the Biden administration to dismantle human smuggling networks operating through Southern Arizona over the past three years.

The group utilized social media platforms like Snapchat to communicate and arrange pick-ups in the desert, capturing GPS coordinates for logistics. Sanchez-Armenta directed routes designed to avoid law enforcement detection. A federal grand jury indicted the five in February 2023, and Sanchez-Armenta was apprehended in Yuma months later.

Reggie Arnez Ward, who admitted to driving migrants and receiving gas money from Sanchez-Armenta, attempted to flee a Border Patrol checkpoint on State Route 86. He was sentenced to 27 months in prison and three years of probation.

Clarissa Lizbeth Gutierrez was involved in a September 2022 incident at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry and received a sentence of time served.

Both Alexandra Yolanda Olvera and Miguel Angel Hernandez were recruited via WhatsApp by Sanchez-Armenta, known by aliases such as Mono, Chuy, Ww, and El-19. Their tasks included picking up and transporting unauthorized migrants in August 2022 and February 2023, respectively. Olvera received three years of probation, while Hernandez was given two years.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations in Casa Grande and Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents, with prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stuart Zander, District of Arizona, Phoenix.