The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Roberto Garcia Villarreal, 59, of San Benito, Texas, was sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay a $50,000 criminal fine for his role in a long-running and violent conspiracy to monopolize the transmigrante forwarding agency industry in the Los Indios, Texas, border region, located near Harlingen and Brownsville, Texas. Villarreal and his co-defendants controlled the transmigrante industry through monopolization and by extorting competitors.The Court remanded Villareal into custody to begin his sentence immediately.
“Antitrust criminals deserve lengthy sentences for the economic — and in this case physical — violence they sow, said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daniel W. Glad of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The Antitrust Division is proud to have worked with our law enforcement colleagues on this long-running investigation that will restore competition and punish violent criminals at the U.S.-Mexico border. We will continue working to incarcerate antitrust criminals and hold accountable the remaining co-defendants in this scheme.”
“Roberto Garcia chose to join a criminal enterprise that seized control of an industry through threats and violence, rigged prices against legitimate businesses, and laundered its proceeds — and now, he is headed to federal prison,” said U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei of the Southern District of Texas. “This sentence serves as proof that no participant of this conspiracy will walk away without consequence. Although, the conspiracy may be finished, the Southern District of Texas is just getting started.”
“The use of violence and intimidation to threaten and remove competition will not be tolerated,” said Acting Assistant Director Gregory Heeb of the FBI Criminal Division. “Today’s sentencing shows the FBI’s commitment to investigating and holding accountable those responsible for price fixing and extortion schemes.”
“This case highlights the significant danger posed by transnational criminal organizations operating near our borders,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge John A. Pasciucco of the HSI San Antonio Field Office. “As an accomplice in carrying out a violent operation that targeted small businesses for extortion, manipulated market prices, and concealed millions of dollars in illicit funds—undermining the security and fairness of lawful trade — HSI will relentlessly seek out those who harm legitimate industries through dishonest actions and intimidation. Our dedication to protecting our communities and economic stability remains firm.”
Transmigrantes arrange for and transport used vehicles and other goods from the United States through Mexico for resale in Central America. There are only a few locations where transmigrantes can cross from the United States into Mexico, one of those being the Los Indios Bridge in Texas.
Transmigrante forwarding agencies are U.S.-based businesses that provide services to transmigrante clients, including helping those clients complete the customs paperwork required to export vehicles into Mexico. According to court documents and statements made in court, Villarreal and his co-defendants fixed prices for transmigrante forwarding agency services and created a centralized entity known as the “Pool” to collect and divide revenues among the co-conspirators, limit competition from other agencies and increase prices for their services.
Forwarding agencies who were not part of the conspiracy had to join and pay into the Pool. Villarreal and other Pool members enforced the rules of the Pool by monitoring whether forwarding agencies were charging the agreed-upon prices and making payments to the Pool. Forwarding agencies were also required to pay other extortion fees, including a “piso” for every transaction processed in the industry.
Villarreal pleaded guilty to conspiracy to illegally fix prices and allocate the market for transmigrante forwarding agency services; conspiracy to monopolize the same market; and conspiracy to interfere with commerce by extortion.
To date, eight others have been convicted, seven of whom have already been sentenced in the case, including the leader - Carlos Martinez, 39, McAllen, who received an 11-year prison term.
Three others - Rigoberto Brown, Miguel Hipolito Caballero Aupart and Diego Ceballos-Soto were also charged in the superseding indictment and remain fugitives. Anyone with information about their whereabouts or with information in connection with this investigation is asked to contact the Antitrust Division’s Complaint Center at 888-647-3258 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/report-violations.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the FBI investigated the case.
Senior Litigation Attorney John Davis and Trial Attorneys Brittany E. McClure, Anne Veldhuis and Michael G. Lepage of the Antitrust Division; Deputy Chief Kelly Pearson of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section; and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander L. Alum for the Southern District of Texas prosecuted the case.
Anyone with information in connection with this investigation should contact the HSI Tip Line at 866-347-2423; the FBI Tip Line at tips.fbi.gov or by contacting the FBI San Antonio Field Office at 210-225-6741; or the Antitrust Division’s Complaint Center at 888-647-3258, or visit www.justice.gov/atr/report-violations. Whistleblowers who voluntarily report original information about antitrust and related offenses that result in criminal fines or other recoveries of at least $1 million may be eligible to receive a whistleblower reward. Whistleblower awards can range from 15 to 30 percent of the money collected. For more information on the Antitrust Whistleblower Rewards Program, including a link to submit reports, visit https://www.justice.gov/atr/whistleblower-rewards.
