A man under an asylum order living in Glendale has been caught smuggling illegal aliens in Cochise County.
According to the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office, on Thursday, August 15, 2024, at approximately 8:55 p.m., deputies attempted to conduct a traffic stop near milepost 330 on Highway 80 on a 2015 Dodge. When deputies activated emergency lights, the vehicle continued at normal speed without yielding/pulling over. The deputy then activated an emergency siren and the vehicle continued to travel without stopping.
The vehicle ultimately came to a stop at milepost 328 on Highway 80 and the driver was advised to turn off the vehicle.
Upon making contact with the driver, 22-year-old Venezuelan citizen in the U.S. on an asylum order Jose Luis Hernandez Villalobos, was found to be transporting two undocumented immigrants.
The migrants were turned over to US Border Patrol for processing and Hernandez Villalobos was booked into the Cochise County Jail on felony charges of Human Smuggling.
“Asylum is a form of protection which allows an individual to remain in the United States instead of being removed (deported) to a country where he or she fears persecution or harm. Under U.S. law, people who flee their countries because they fear persecution can apply for asylum. If they are granted asylum, this gives them protection and the right to stay in the United States. Those who are granted asylum are called asylees,” according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.