Enforcement

Texas trucker gets 21 months in federal prison for smuggling 10 people hidden in his cab

Prosecutors said two people were concealed in a storage compartment beneath four others at the Sarita checkpoint and could not escape; the driver pleaded guilty in May.

By CDLWire · Published October 16, 2026

Summarized from CDLLife.

A semi truck stopped at a Border Patrol checkpoint in south Texas for inspection

A Texas truck driver has been sentenced to 21 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for smuggling 10 people concealed in his tractor-trailer cab, according to CDLLife on Oct. 15, reporting an announcement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas.

Robert Martinez Jr, 51, of Needville, Texas, pleaded guilty on May 20, 2026, to charges related to human smuggling. The underlying stop happened on March 9, 2026, at the Border Patrol checkpoint near Sarita, Texas, where Martinez told officers he was hauling onions and agreed to a scan of the vehicle.

Prosecutors said the scan showed anomalies in the cab, and a closer inspection found 10 people hidden on the top bunk, beneath a blanket on the lower bunk, and inside a storage compartment underneath it. The two people in the storage compartment were sweating with flushed faces, officials said.

The sentencing court considered those conditions. The U.S. Attorney's Office said the two people in the compartment were beneath four others, making it impossible for them to escape. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and Border Patrol.