Vast International Alien Smuggling, Organization Extradited, Mexico Friday — Member of Vast International Alien Smuggling Organization Extradited from Mexico | United States Justice Department.
The ASO operated stash houses in Monterrey, Mexico, and Piedras Negras, Mexico. Mejia-Zuniga said the organization accused between $6,500 to $12,000 per alien, totaling approximately $16 to $30 million in financial gain.Efrain Zuniga-Garcia operated the stash house in Monterrey and coordinated with other members of the ASO to transport aliens to the stash house and then into the U.S. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum punishment of five years in prison. Dedicated support is
provided by numerous components of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, led by HRSP and supported by the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, Office of Enforcement Operations, and the Office of International Affairs, among others. Mejia-Zuniga directed operations, as well as paid armed “coyotes,” load drivers, and stash house operators. announcement Member of Vast International Alien Smuggling Organization Extradited from Mexico Friday, September 26, 2025 Share Facebook X LinkedIn Email For Immediate Release Office of Public Affairs A Mexican man made his initial appearance in court in Del Rio today after being
extradited to Texas from Mexico to face allegations relating to his role in an international alien smuggling organization.In September 2023, a federal grand jury in the Western District of Texas returned an indictment against Efrain Zuniga-Garcia, 37, of Mexico, for conspiring to smuggle aliens from multiple countries into the United States for financial gain.Beginning in November 2020 and continuing through September 2023, the defendant and others were part of a vast international alien smuggling organization (ASO) that illegally brought thousands of aliens from Afghanistan, Yemen, Egypt, India, Pakistan, Columbia, Guatemala, Honduras, and Ecuador into the United