El Paso: Smuggler pleads guilty in conspiracy linked to 40 missing migrants

A Colombian national pleaded guilty Monday in El Paso federal court for his role in a human smuggling conspiracy tied to the disappearance of 40 migrants and two boat captains at sea. The plea comes more than two years after the boat vanished on a route between Colombia and Nicaragua, a stretch of water that remains the focus of a federal smuggling investigation that has now produced its first conviction.

Luis Enrique Linero Pinto, 41, of Colombia, who authorities say is also known by the alias “El Calvo,” pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit immigrant smuggling and placing lives in jeopardy, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

“Linero Pinto played a critical role in a prolific human smuggling conspiracy that used corruption and illicit means of transport to move aliens from Colombia to the United States for money,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “During the transport, dozens of people disappeared at sea, never to be seen or heard from again. This conviction serves as the latest example of how Joint Task Force Alpha continues to lead the Department’s efforts to aggressively crack down on transnational human smuggling and trafficking networks that threaten the lives of those transported, as well as the security of our citizens and border.”

Justin R. Simmons, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Texas, said: “While we grieve the lives lost due to this defendant’s conduct, it is right and good to applaud the tireless work of our special agents and prosecutors that secured this conviction and to highlight yet another successful international partnership.”

“Human smuggling organizations, by definition, engage in cross-border operations, so they can only be dismantled through cross-border partnerships,” Simmons added. “By cooperating in this way, we ensure that our border is secure, which is a key component in making certain that this country is one where Americans cannot merely survive, but thrive.”

Linero Pinto faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

According to the indictment and court documents, Linero Pinto advised the migrants on how to get to San Andres Island, Colombia, where he personally received them, arranged for their accommodation, and brought them to boats that transported them to Nicaragua so they could illegally enter the United States, the Justice Department said.

The Justice Department also said Linero Pinto bribed members of the Colombian Navy to acquire real-time intelligence about the position of Navy patrol vessels located between San Andres Island and Nicaragua, enabling the boats to avoid detection.

On Oct. 21, 2023, a boat carrying approximately 40 migrants and two boat captains disappeared on its way to Nicaragua after leaving San Andres Island. Linero Pinto has admitted his role in smuggling the immigrants on that boat.

Linero Pinto was charged in October 2024 for conspiring to encourage and induce undocumented immigrants to come to, enter, and reside in the United States. He was arrested in Colombia in December 2024 at the request of the U.S. government. He made his initial appearance in federal court in El Paso in December 2025.

“Human smuggling organizations put profit over human life, exploiting vulnerable people and placing them in dangerous, often deadly conditions,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan G. McRae of Homeland Security Investigations El Paso. “HSI’s mission is to protect the American people and safeguard our borders by dismantling the transnational criminal networks that threaten public safety and national security. This guilty plea reflects HSI’s commitment to working with our domestic and international partners to identify, investigate and bring to justice those who facilitate these dangerous smuggling schemes.”

HSI led the investigation, with assistance from its McAllen, El Paso, and Cartagena field offices. The Justice Department’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training, Office of International Affairs, and Judicial Attaché Office in Bogotá also provided assistance, along with U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center International Interdiction Task Force. The investigation and indictment were coordinated and prosecuted by Joint Task Force Alpha.