PHOENIX - A Mexican national extradited from Mexico was sentenced to 87 months in federal prison for his role as a manager in a smuggling organization that moved well over 200 illegal immigrants from Central Asia, Africa, and the Middle East across the U.S.-Mexico border between 2018 and 2022, the Justice Department announced.
Raul Saucedo-Huipio, 51, of Mexicali, Mexico, pleaded guilty in March 2026 to conspiracy to bring an alien to the United States and one substantive count of the same charge. The organization he helped run charged aliens as much as tens of thousands of dollars per crossing and routed them through Bangladesh, Yemen, Pakistan, Eritrea, India, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Russia, Egypt, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico before they reached the United States.
“Human smuggling is not a victimless crime. It is a direct assault on our national security and an exploitation of some of the world’s most vulnerable people,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “This criminal organization not only moved aliens across the border; it stole from them and left them in desperate situations. Human smuggling causes so many additional problems that communities and government programs ultimately inherit. It is dangerous and a drain on our resources.”
Saucedo-Huipio frequently brandished a firearm in his waistband before border crossings, according to the indictment. He and co-conspirators provided ladders to climb the border fence, pointed out holes that could be crawled through, and laid planks across waterways — including one crossing where three small children walked a wooden plank over a body of water. The organization also robbed the aliens of money, cell phones, and other belongings, often while armed with guns and knives.
“Violent human smugglers like Saucedo-Huipio use intimidation, violence and coercion to achieve their goals — financial gain no matter the harm caused,” said Special Agent in Charge Jason T. Stevens for ICE Homeland Security Investigations Arizona. “One of the many HSI missions include investigating human smuggling organizations to dismantle them and bring those responsible to face justice in a court of law. The sentence imposed today serves not only as punishment, but as an opportunity for the offender to reflect on the damage inflicted on so many people. Behind bars is where Saucedo-Huipio belongs.”
Saucedo-Huipio and co-conspirator Ofelia Hernandez-Salas were arrested in Mexico in March 2023 pursuant to a U.S. extradition request. Hernandez-Salas pleaded guilty in December 2024 to one count of conspiracy and three substantive counts of bringing an alien to the United States for commercial benefit. She was sentenced to 11 years in prison on May 13 for her role in the operation.
The case was prosecuted through Joint Task Force Alpha, the Justice Department’s lead effort against high-impact human smuggling by cartels and transnational criminal organizations. JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 458 domestic and international arrests of leaders and significant facilitators of alien smuggling, more than 408 U.S. convictions, and more than 357 significant jail sentences. HSI Yuma investigated the case with assistance from U.S. Border Patrol, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, INTERPOL, and Mexican law enforcement partners who were instrumental in securing the extradition.