CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A high-ranking leader in a human smuggling organization was sentenced to eight years in federal prison Aug. 7 following an investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Houston’s Corpus Christi office with assistance from the U.S. Border Patrol and Texas Department of Public Safety.
Anthony Lenard Williams, a 27-year-old resident of Pharr, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas to eight years in federal prison to be immediately followed by two years of supervised release for conspiracy to transport noncitizens. Williams pleaded guilty to the charges on April 28, 2023.
During the hearing, the court found that Williams was responsible for smuggling at least 560 noncitizens who were apprehended by authorities, but that the number was more than likely in the thousands when accounting for the noncitizens who got away or were not apprehended. In fact, the court found that Williams continued to coordinate the smuggling of noncitizens while he was out on bond prior to this sentencing.
Some of the smuggling loads included as many as 115 noncitizens in the back of tractor-trailers, and at times included unaccompanied minors. In one smuggling attempt, some of the noncitizens had to be treated for severe dehydration because of the dangerous manner in which they were transported.
In 2021, authorities began investigating an organization responsible for smuggling thousands of undocumented noncitizens in tractor-trailers. Through the course of that investigation, law enforcement identified Williams and Miguel Angel Hernandez, a 26-year-old resident of Donna, as coordinators. Hernandez was previously sentenced to nine years for his role in the organization.
“This individual flagrantly disregarded our nation’s immigration laws, smuggling at least 560 noncitizens into the U.S. and even continuing to smuggle people into the country while he was out on bond,” said HSI Houston Special Agent in Charge Mark Dawson. “In addition to undermining our nation’s immigration laws, he put the lives of the noncitizens that he smuggled at risk by smuggling them in the back of a tractor-trailer in the searing Texas heat. Working in conjunction with our law enforcement partners, we were able to dismantle the human smuggling organization that he is affiliated with and put two of their leaders in prison.”
Previously released on bond, Williams was taken into custody following the sentencing where he will remain pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Barbara J. De Peña prosecuted the case.
For more news and information on HSI’s efforts to aggressively investigate human smuggling in Southeast Texas follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @HSIHouston.