Posted on 12/07/2006 1:45:26 PM PST by SwinneySwitch
— Two of five men accused of smuggling undocumented immigrants on a luxury boat from Port Isabel to Corpus Christi earlier this year were sentenced to prison Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge Hilda Tagle sentenced Mack Daniel Bryant, owner of charter boat company Breakaway Cruises, to 2½ years in federal prison for conspiracy to transport and harbor certain aliens in the United States.
Tagle also sentenced Norman Michael Walker, a captain for Breakaway Cruises, to one year in federal prison on the same charge.
Tagle said she wanted to send a strong message to anyone attempting to smuggle undocumented immigrants. She said she hoped the prison sentences would cause someone considering committing such a crime “to think about it twice.”
“Transporting illegal immigrants through waterways is a serious offense,” she said.
Tagle also ordered Bryant to pay a $40,000 fine and forfeit the boat that was used in the scheme.
The luxury boat is worth about $400,000, according to court documents.
“I had no idea I could go to prison for this charge,” Bryant said following the sentencing. “I’m sorry for my actions. Since May 21, I’ve had a lot of time to reflect.”
Walker’s attorney, Rick Zayas, said his client did not know he was helping transport undocumented immigrants during the first two trips but later became aware.
Zayas said Walker told Bryant several times to stop.
The men were charged with smuggling 24 undocumented immigrants on a luxury boat between July 1, 2005, to May 21 from Port Isabel to Corpus Christi.
During the sentencing, federal prosecutor Tara Bay told the judge that Bryant and Walker participated in at least four trips.
The sentencing hearing for Robert Milton Moore, manager for Breakaway Cruises during the time of the scheme, will continue at 9 a.m. today. On Sept. 6, Moore pleaded guilty to two counts of transporting certain aliens within the United States and one count of conspiracy to transport and harbor certain aliens in the United States.
Luis Alberto Gutierrez-Zapien and Baldemar Valdez, two other co-defendants in the case, were not sentenced Wednesday. It is unclear when they will be sentenced.
TIMELINE
Breakaway Cruises personnel help transport undocumented immigrants from Port Isabel to Corpus Christi.
May 21: Mack Daniel Bryant, owner of Breakaway Cruises, is arrested by U.S. Coast Guard and Immigration & Customs Enforcement agents in Brownsville after returning from a smuggling trip from Corpus Christi. Baldemar Valdez Jr., a deckhand with Breakaway Cruises, along with six undocumented immigrants are arrested by customs officials in Corpus Christi.
May 23: Luis Alberto Gutierrez-Zapien is arrested by customs agents on a charge of human smuggling. He is accused of being the “middleman.”
May 24: Customs agents arrest Robert M. Moore on a felony human smuggling charge. Moore was the manager at Breakaway Cruises.
May 30: Michael Walker, a captain with Breakaway Cruises, is arrested by customs agents on a charge of human smuggling.
June 21: All men pleaded not guilty to human smuggling charges.
June 30: Gutierrez-Zapien pleads guilty to a federal human smuggling charge.
Aug. 1: Valdez pleads guilty to four of four counts of transporting illegal aliens.
Aug. 2: Bryant arrested after he attempts to “manipulate the decision of a co-defendant.”
Aug. 3: Bryant is denied a request to be released from custody.
Sept. 6: Bryant, Walker and Moore enter guilty pleas instead of going to trial.
Source: Court records, The Brownsville Herald archives
jborjon@brownsvilleherald.com
Straightenin' the curves, flattenin' the hills.... Someday the mountain might get 'em but the law never will.
Makin' their way, the only way they know how... That's just a little bit more than the law will allow.
Just two good ol' boys, wouldn't change if they could, Fightin' the system like two modern-day Robin Hoods...
“I had no idea I could go to prison for this charge,” Bryant said following the sentencing"
IB4TP
Human trafficing is about the only way you get in trouble dealing with illegals. It's kind of like killing the messenger.
ping
Boat smugglers. Just Damn.
Hang Them!
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