March 5, 2025Phoenix, AZ, United StatesHuman Smuggling/Trafficking

Illegal alien indicted for conspiracy to transport other aliens and possession with intent to distribute heroin, following ICE, joint law enforcement partner investigation

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Last week, a grand jury returned an indictment against Edgar Guadalupe Jimenez-Aguilar, an illegal alien living in Phoenix, for conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and possession with intent to distribute heroin, following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, United States Border Patrol Alien Smuggling Unit – Tucson Sector, Casa Grande, Pinal and Pima County Sheriff Departments and other law enforcement partners.

ICE and United States Border Patrol agents identified Jimenez-Aguilar as a load driver who picked up illegal aliens in desert areas in Pinal and Pima Counties and transported them to Phoenix. Jimenez-Aguilar also operated a stash house in Phoenix used to harbor the aliens and assumed a coordinator role by recruiting others to act as load drivers.

“This indictment highlights the disturbing reality that individuals like Jimenez-Aquilar are prioritizing personal profit over human lives. By trafficking heroin and exploiting vulnerable individuals through illegal smuggling operations, he has shown a blatant disregard for the safety and well-being of others,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Arizona Special Agent in Charge Francisco B. Burrola. “ICE is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to disrupt these dangerous networks and ensure that those who exploit people for financial gain are brought to justice."

From late 2024 through January 2025, agents interviewed other load drivers arrested for transporting illegal aliens, who admitted Jimenez-Aguilar had recruited them. The agents also conducted surveillance on Jimenez-Aguilar and his stash house. On Oct. 3, 2024, officers with the Tohono O’odham Police Department stopped a vehicle and determined four passengers, including two in the trunk of the vehicle, were aliens who were in the United States illegally.

Officers learned that the driver had been recruited on social media, had participated in multiple prior smuggling ventures, and had been to Jimenez-Aguilar’s stash house to unload the aliens. On Jan. 28, agents stopped a Jeep Grand Cherokee in Mesa and identified the driver as Jimenez-Aguilar via his Sonoran driver’s license. Inside the vehicle, agents located approximately 297 grams of black tar heroin.

Possession with intent to distribute heroin carries a minimum penalty of five years and up to 40 years in prison, as well as a fine of up to $5,000,000. Conspiracy to transport illegal aliens carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

An indictment is simply a method by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Vanessa Kubota, District of Arizona, Phoenix, is handling the prosecution.

Report suspicious criminal activity to the ICE Tip Line 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423).

Updated: 03/05/2025