DOJ Official Highlights Deadly Smuggling Route After 42 Vanish at Sea

A Colombian national has pleaded guilty in federal court in El Paso, Texas, for his role in a human smuggling conspiracy that used maritime routes and bribery, U.S. authorities announced. Luis Enrique Linero Pinto, 41, also known as "El Calvo," admitted to facilitating a smuggling operation that led to the disappearance of a boat carrying approximately 42 people. The vessel departed Colombia's San Andrés Island for Nicaragua on Oct. 21, 2023, and was never heard from again.

Assistant Attorney General Tysen Duva, who leads the Justice Department's Criminal Division, described the incident as "particularly sad and disturbing," noting that the individuals aboard are presumed dead with no known survivors. Duva emphasized that the danger faced by migrants does not end even if they reach land, as smuggling organizations often exploit vulnerable individuals.

"It’s all about money," Duva stated. "Anybody who’s involved with a cartel or transnational smuggling in this regard, it is about money. It’s about preying on people’s misfortune."

According to the Justice Department, Linero Pinto guided migrants to San Andrés Island, arranged their accommodations, and transported them to boats bound for Nicaragua. From there, the migrants intended to travel through Central America and Mexico before attempting to enter the United States. Court documents indicate that Linero Pinto also bribed members of the Colombian Navy to gain intelligence on patrol vessels, enabling smuggling boats to evade authorities.

Duva warned that the journey involves treacherous terrain throughout South and Central America, as well as across the U.S.-Mexico border. He also highlighted that migrants who reach the United States may fall into debt bondage and be forced into sex trafficking.

"You pay money to come to the United States, and then when you get here, the co-conspirators or those involved in the criminal enterprise will say, ‘But now you owe more, and you’re going to work this off in the sex trade,’" Duva explained. He added that cross-border smuggling cases frequently morph into human trafficking cases, victimizing the travelers and posing a significant threat to public safety.

Linero Pinto was charged in October 2024 and extradited from Colombia to the United States in December 2025. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and placing lives in jeopardy and faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. A case against an alleged co-conspirator, Hernando Manuel de la Cruz Rivera, remains pending.

The prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America and was coordinated by Joint Task Force Alpha, an initiative aimed at dismantling cartels and transnational organizations involved in human smuggling and trafficking. Duva credited President Donald Trump's administration for focusing resources on this initiative, which he said has allowed the Criminal Division to hire additional prosecutors and pursue transnational criminal organizations more effectively.

Joint Task Force Alpha has been responsible for over 483 domestic and international arrests, more than 436 U.S. convictions, and over 371 significant prison sentences. Duva stressed that combating these criminal networks should not be a partisan issue, as they threaten both migrants and communities.

"We are going to chase these cases no matter where they originate from or where we find them," Duva asserted. "They just think, ‘Well, they catch other people, but they’re not going to get me.’ You really try to combat that one case at a time."

The Justice Department's objective, Duva concluded, is the "total elimination" of cartels and the criminal organizations profiting from human suffering. The vanished boat, he said, serves as a somber reminder of the importance of this mission.