Man stopped in Jackson County admits hauling unauthorized immigrants

A man recently arrested in Jackson County has admitted he was transporting immigrants while knowing they hadn’t received permission to enter the United States.

Yunier Hurtado de Armas, 30, faces one to five years in prison at his sentencing in federal court Sept. 20. He faces a fine of up to $250,000 and can be returned to his home country of Cuba.

He and some of his six passengers told agents they were heading to Miami, Florida, from Houston for construction work when they were pulled over in a traffic stop April 27 on Interstate 10.

A U.S. Border Patrol agent from the Gulfport Station and a member of the South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team were parked off I-10 near the Moss Point/Pascagoula exit when they saw an eastbound red Pacifica that drastically changed its speed as it passed by, a court document said.

The Pacifica had a paper tag, providing probable cause for a stop, and was registered to a man who’s been investigated for being part of a smuggling operation that has moved unauthorized immigrants from Houston to Atlanta.

Armas has lived in the United States about 1 1/2 years. Court records show three of his passengers are from Mexico; two are from Guatemala and one is from Honduras.

Armas and all six admitted the men were in the U.S. without the proper paperwork, a court document said.

Some of the men said they had entered the United States near Eagle Pass, Texas, on April 23. Three of the passengers came from Mexico, another from Honduras and two others from Guatemala. All six passengers also were taken into custody for being in the United States illegally.

Two agents from Homeland Security Investigations were called in to help investigate.

A federal grand jury indicted him May 17 on two counts, each involving an immigrant undocumented in the U.S. Armas accepted a plea agreement on one count.

U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden is presiding over the case.

This story was originally published June 27, 2016 at 12:06 PM with the headline "Man stopped in Jackson County admits hauling unauthorized immigrants."