Las Vegas Sun

November 26, 2009

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Two sentenced for holding smuggled immigrants hostage

By Mary Manning (contact)

Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009 | 4:51 p.m.

Sun Coverage

Two men were sentenced today in federal court after they pleaded guilty to holding seven illegal immigrants in a Las Vegas hotel room against their wills and for ransom.

Victor Manual Morales-Velazquez, 22, was sentenced to three years and a month in prison and Angel Rigoberto Uribe-Ibarra, 48, was sentenced to three years and five months in prison, said U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden of Nevada.

The two men pleaded guilty July 9 to conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens for private financial gain.

Two other men also charged with the crime, Orlando Jimenez, 21, and Felipe de Jesus Flores-Villela, 33, are scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 16 and Dec. 11, respectively.

All of the men -- except Jimenez, who is a U.S. citizen -- are Mexican nationals who entered the United States unlawfully, Bogden said.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents received information April 23 that illegal immigrants from Mexico were being held against their wills in Las Vegas.

Family members of the victims had been contacted by the captors and told they had to pay $2,800 to secure the release of each person, Bogden said.

ICE agents, working with local and federal law enforcement authorities, combed telephone records and found the people they were looking for had a room at the Aruba Hotel, 1215 Las Vegas Blvd. S.

Law enforcement officers knocked and entered the room on April 23, finding 12 people. Agents took all 12 into custody, finding that 11 were in the country illegally and seven had been smuggled into the United States for a fee.

The people who had been brought to Las Vegas had to contact family members or provide contact information to their captors, Bogden said. The people had also been physically assaulted and intimidated in the presence of others. Guns were drawn to keep the captives under control to coerce them and their families to pay ransoms, authorities said.

Agents recovered three pellet firing replica pistols and a knife with a blade that opened automatically.

The case was investigated by ICE, DEA and Metro Police, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberly M. Frayn, Christina M. Brown and Bradley Giles.

Discussion: 10 comments so far…

  1. By lcdrmandingonamvet
    10/6/09 at 5:27 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    Old American plantation movie. Us African AMericans have been held hostage since 1619. 35 WASP American males (Gates-$60 billion & Buffet $40 billion), have more combined wealth, than 38 million African Americans. Sign posted in Ghana, "FREE-CRUISES", and we haven't seen "free-dom" since.

  2. By get_involved
    10/6/09 at 5:27 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    They were hard workers though!
    HELP STOP ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION.......MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD: http://www.numbersusa.com/content/

    WHAT IS NUMBERSUSA ALL ABOUT
    http://www.numbersusa.com/content/about-...

  3. By perry161492
    10/6/09 at 7:43 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    u can't stop it. look at all those mexican grocery store opening up in empty vons albertson store hell they paying tax dollars that state of nevada don't have. think b 4 u speak. hell those store make excellent burrito hell i go in them

  4. By Nick
    10/6/09 at 8:35 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    We are moving to a Nation without borders. Maybe it will be better.

    We need people to fill the empty houses...

    Bienvenidos

  5. By bdover
    10/6/09 at 8:37 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    It's much too late to stop the illegals. They're here, and dropping kids like a chicken laying eggs in the hen house. Did you know that Cox Cable has 31 Spanish channels? Why learn English when you can watch Spanish TV with your kids? That school over in West Las Vegas is 81% Spanish, and 45% of the students no speaky English. Too late, too little...

  6. By DTJ
    10/6/09 at 9:56 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    Look, traditionally America has welcomed immigrants when we needed labor to work our factories or build our railroads, and then we have closed our borders when the stress of too many new immigrants at once was too great. The latter is definitely the case now. It is entirely within our rights as a sovereign nation to decide who can and cannot enter our country.

    BUILD THE WALL! Then restrict immigration to those who bring needed skills, and other valuable traits to our society (like being educated and fluent in English, the language that bonds us as a society.)

    For those who have already snuck in here, I'm not cold-hearted enough to kick you out and break up families. But NO MORE! If you're here, consider yourself lucky. Now make your kids study in school and get with the program.

    Those Mexican gangs are turning places like Cuidad Jaurez, Tijuana, and Mexico City itself into urban jungles of death and fear. Now their creeping into the U.S. It's time to take back control of our border. BUILD THAT DAMN WALL!

  7. By spock
    10/6/09 at 10:33 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    Our government is filled with too many wimps and pansies to do anything about this infestation of illegals that are like locust that will devour anything in thier path!

  8. By pyrostevo
    10/7/09 at 5:46 a.m.
    Suggest removal

    Our Government, past & present, Republican & Democrat, have allowed the invasion of 20 to 30 million criminals and uneducated peons which is the largest invasion of any Nation, at any time, by any means & in direct violation of Article IV, Section IV of our Constitution.

    This refusal to abide by our Constitution or enforce our Immigration Laws should be classified as Treason of the most foul kind, & as grounds for impeachment & trials for Treason!

    Not only have they allowed the invasion, they force American tax payers to pay Billions on Billions of dollars to provide Welfare, Prison cells, Educate the invaders numerous children, and free medical care, at the same time the invading horde break numerous laws and massive document fraud, & are destroying our schools, hospitals, communities, culture and standard of living while Robbing, Raping, Killing & Assaulting American Citizens WAKE UP PEOPLE!

  9. By Bodytalk555
    10/7/09 at 6:42 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    Let's be honest..Illegals have ruined this country. They are in all 48 mainland states and continue to give birth at an amazing rate which sucks up public funds from education to law enforcement. People who deny this are liars.

  10. By Nick
    10/7/09 at 7:36 p.m.
    Suggest removal

    Lets be honest, White trash are breeding and killing us by taxing us for the schools, healthcare, and housing vouchers.

    47% pay NO TAX!

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