SAN ANTONIO – A second man has pleaded guilty to charges in last summer's human smuggling case in San Antonio.
Federal prosecutors said Pedro Segura, 47, operated a stash house in Laredo. Undocumented immigrants stayed at the house while they waited for transportation.
Segura said five people who were staying at the house were taken to a truck last July. The truck was heading to San Antonio, and was driven by James Bradley Junior, 60.
Officers found the truck in a Wal-Mart parking lot with 39 immigrants inside. Eight people died at the scene and two others were pronounced dead at the hospital.
Most of the immigrants were from Mexicans who had crossed the United States' southern border. The trailer's cooling system was broken, and witnesses told authorities that they fought to breathe and tried in vain to get the trailer to stop as it headed north.
Investigators believe up to 200 people may have been in the trailer, and paid different fees for transportation.
The indictment charges Bradley and Segura each with one count of conspiracy to transport and harbor immigrants who are illegally in the U.S. for financial gain resulting in death and two counts of transporting immigrants who are illegally in the U.S. resulting in serious bodily injury and placing lives in jeopardy.
In October 2017, Bradley pleaded guilty to federal charges. His sentencing is scheduled for later this month, and Segura's is scheduled for June. Both men face life in prison.
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