Man arrested for smuggling illegal aliens on I-81

By Scott Leamon
WSLS10 Reporter
Published: April 23, 2008

A special team of state police officers and federal agents arrested a man in Botetourt County for smuggling eleven illegal aliens, according to sources with Virginia State Police and federal court records.

Officers with the state police criminal interdiction team stopped a vehicle after an alleged traffic violation on April 11th near mile marker 155 in Botetourt County, according to state police.

Federal court records show agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, believe the driver was Pedro Mateo, an employee of an illegal smuggling network hired by eleven illegal aliens inside the SUV to ferry them from Phoenix, Arizona to the east coast.

The same records show one of the passengers escaped by running from the SUV.

The remaining ten passengers, along with Mateo, were taken into custody, according to the records.

The records read three of the passengers were juveniles and turned over to the Virginia Department of Social Services.

Three days later, court records show ICE agents interviewed the seven adult passengers.

All seven people told agents Mateo made them “duck and hide” upon his command if he saw police, according to the documents.

The documents also state the seven people told agents Mateo made them use the restroom in plastic bottles, and only stopped for food once on the entire trip.

The documents say all seven will eventually be deported since all were determined to be illegal aliens.

Mateo is charged with transporting illegal aliens across state lines.

Court records show he will be lodged in Roanoke City Jail pending the outcome of his eventual trial.

Court records also show ICE agents believe Mateo was in the country illegally.