BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), eight individuals linked to an attempt to smuggle 24 people from Honduras were indicted this week.
Officials say the eight are accused of participating in an international scheme to smuggle undocumented individuals into Louisiana aboard a vessel called “Pop.”
Carl Allison, 46, is said to be “Pop’s” owner and according to the DOJ, Allision worked alongside 37-year-old “Omar” Lindomar De La Rosa, and six other people to bring the undocumented individuals from Honduras into the United States between the dates of December 2021-February 14, 2022.
Officials say the Coast Guard apprehended “Pop” off the coast of Grand Isle on February 15 and seized 24 kilograms of cocaine from the ship.
If convicted of the human smuggling offenses, each defendant faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison.
According to the DOJ, in addition to Allison and De La Rosa, the other defendants are:
– 35-year-old Josue Alexander Flores-Villeda,
– 40-year-old Darrel Martinez
– 39-year-old Lenard Cooper
– 35-year-old Rudy Jackson Hernandez
– 26-year-old Hennessey Devon Cooper
– 39-year-old Lance Vroon (still at large)
Officials added that if convicted of the drug conspiracy offense, Villeda will face between 10 years and life in prison.
The case remains under investigation and is in the hands of HSI Houma, with assistance from HSI Pittsburgh, HSI Atlanta, and the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation.
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