U.S. lays charges alleging human smuggling across Canadian border

Motorists wait at U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspection booths at the Peace Arch border crossing in Blaine, Wash., across the Canada-U.S. border from Surrey, B.C., on Monday, November 8, 2021. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck)

The U.S. Department of Justice said four Mexican nationals have been charged with allegedly running a human smuggling operation across the Canadian border.

A news release on Friday said the four men charged thousands of dollars to bring people from Mexico to Canada, then across the international border into northern New York.

“As alleged, these defendants illegally entered this country and then sought to smuggle hundreds of aliens per week to the United States from Mexico, Central America, and South America through the Canadian border,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, head of the Justice department’s criminal division, in the news release.

The department said the organization had been operating for two years in Mexico, Canada and the United States. On multiple occasions, the organization led local and federal law enforcement officers on high-speed vehicle chases along the Canada-U.S. border, the department said.

In April 2023, the department alleged smugglers were chased by border patrol after setting off a sensor. The vehicle was eventually stopped and found to be transporting seven adults and three minors.

Three months later, the department alleges members of the same organization drove erratically, ran a red light and struck another vehicle at an intersection. The driver and six others fled the scene but were apprehended later.

Galeotti said in the news release that the men made people record testimonial videos about their services but “in reality, the defendants imperiled their human cargo and innocent American lives when they repeatedly engaged in life-threatening conduct, including multiple high-speed getaways from law enforcement.”

Edgar Sanchez-Solis, 23, Ignacio Diaz-Perez, 35, Samuel Diaz-Perez, 26, and Salvador Diaz-Diaz, 32, were charged with conspiracy to bring people to the U.S. and 25 counts of bringing people illegally to the United States for profit.

The department said two of the men were arrested in the U.S., while the other two had previously been removed from the country.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 2, 2025.

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press