The DOJ has been busy under Trump. They’re constantly looking to root out people or organizations who are harming this country.
And the Department of Justice stopped an evil plan to destroy America from within.
In a major win for American border security, federal authorities have busted a massive human smuggling operation that’s been flooding the country with illegal immigrants from Cuba. Twelve individuals now face serious charges for orchestrating an $18 million scheme that exploited desperate people and undermined immigration laws, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The ring, run like a slick criminal enterprise, lured Cubans with promises of legal entry into the United States by pretending they were European citizens eligible for visa waivers, per U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office. This deception ran from January 2021 all the way through June 2025, showing just how long these crooks operated under the radar.
To pull off their scam, the group forged fake documents, arranged private charter flights, and funneled dirty money through everyday apps like Zelle.
“We will not rest until those who profit from the suffering of vulnerable people — including many unaccompanied children — face severe, comprehensive justice,” Bondi stated on Thursday.
At the heart of the operation was a phony company called “ASESORIA Y SERVICIOS MIGRATORIOS LLC,” which means Immigration Advice and Services LLC. They posed as helpful advisors for immigrants navigating permits and asylum claims.
But behind the facade, these operators blasted promotions on social media to reel in victims, then submitted hundreds of fraudulent Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) applications to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It was all smoke and mirrors to sneak people across U.S. borders.
According to the DOJ, victims shelled out anywhere from $1,500 to a whopping $40,000 each, handing over cash that totaled around $7 million in Zelle transfers over the four-year span. That’s money that could have gone to hardworking Americans instead of lining the pockets of smugglers.
On top of that, the fake outfit blew more than $2.5 million on flights to shuttle their clients into the country, treating America’s borders like an open door for anyone with enough cash.
“This indictment exposes a criminal organization that smuggled people into the United States on a massive scale,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti stated.
“Posing as a legitimate immigration service, the defendants used social media promotions and false legal filings to attract new clients and perpetuate their fraud,” he continued.
The charged individuals include young operators like Lazaro Alain Cabrera-Rodriguez, 27, and Yuniel Lima-Santos, 30, along with Liannys Yaiselys Vega-Perez, 26, and Marianny Lucia Lopez-Torres, 25.
Others named are Frandy Aragon-Diaz, 33, Erik Ventura-Castro, 23, Miguel Alejandro Martinez Vasconcelos, 30, Walbis Pozo-Dutel, 30, Emanuel Martinez Gonzalez, 28, Luis Emmanuel Escalona-Marrero, 31, Layra Libertad Treto Santos, 31, and Gisleivy Peralta Consuegra, 40.
Specifically, Lima-Santos and Aragon-Diaz got hit with alien smuggling for financial gain charges, highlighting their direct role in the profiteering.
Most of the group—everyone except Consuegra—faces conspiracy to commit alien smuggling for financial gain, proving this was a coordinated effort to game the system.
Consuegra, along with Lima-Santos, Vega-Perez, Aragon-Diaz, and Santos, also drew charges for conspiracy to commit asylum fraud, as they twisted American humanitarian processes into a cash cow.
Additionally, Cabrera-Rodriguez, Lima-Santos, Vega-Perez, Aragon-Diaz, Ventura-Castro, Martinez Vasconcelos, Escalona-Marrero, and Santos are looking at conspiracy to launder monetary instruments charges, tying up the financial loose ends of their illegal empire.
This takedown falls under the DOJ’s Operation Take Back America, an important initiative that’s finally cracking down on illegal immigration and the crimes that come with it.
Stay tuned to The Federalist Wire.
