SAN ANTONIO – A 31-year-old man pleaded guilty on Thursday to his involvement in a tractor-trailer smuggling case that killed 53 people in San Antonio in 2022.
Riley Covarrubias-Ponce aka Rrili aka Rilay pleaded guilty to four charges, including one count of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death; one count of conspiracy to transport aliens resulting in serious bodily injury and placing lives in jeopardy; one count of transportation of illegal aliens resulting in death; and one count of transportation of illegal aliens resulting in serious bodily injury and placing lives in jeopardy.
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He faces up to life in prison.
A news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office states that Covarrubias-Ponce was part of an organization that smuggled adults and children from Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico to the U.S.
Just before the June 27, 2022, tragedy, Covarrubias-Ponce and other members of the organization coordinated the transport of a group of migrants in a trailer from Laredo to San Antonio, the release states.
The group was smuggled through Interstate 35 and the truck ultimately stopped in the 9600 block of Quintana Road, where the migrants were left in the sweltering heat without ventilation, air-conditioning or water.
Forty-seven adults and six children died from their injuries.
The release states that Covarrubias-Ponce also accompanied the truck as it traveled to San Antonio.
The driver of the truck, 47-year-old Homero Zamorano Jr. has a case pending. Other co-defendants Felipe Orduna-Torres, 29; Luis Alberto Rivera-Leal aka Cowboy, 38; and Armando Gonzales-Ortega aka El Don aka Don Gon, 54, also have cases pending.
Christian Martinez, 29, and Juan Francisco D’Luna Bilbao have pleaded guilty to the same charges as Covarrubias-Ponce.
Covarrubias-Ponce, Orduna-Torres and others allegedly exchanged the names of the migrants who were smuggled in the tractor-trailer load before the incident occurred, a previous news release states. They allegedly orchestrated the “retrieval” of the tractor-trailer before handing it off to Zamorano, officials said in a release.