The alleged driver of the Texas migrant death truck made his first court appearance Thursday in a case that could lead to his execution.
Homero Zamorano Jr., 45, is charged with a single count of transportation of illegal aliens resulting in death, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison or death.
Zamorano sat next to a pair of public defenders and wore a white T-shirt, gray sweatpants and blue surgical mask as San Antonio federal Magistrate Judge Elizabeth “Betsy” Chestney told him about the charge and its potential consequences, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
Chestney scheduled another hearing Wednesday to determine if there’s probable cause to believe a crime was committed and whether Zamorano should be released on bond.
Lead defense lawyer Jose I. Gonzalez-Falla declined to comment following the five-minute proceeding.
The alleged driver Homero Zamorano is seen in images presented during a news conference held by the commissioner of the National Institute of Migration. Youtube
Hector Zamorano Jr. is charged with a single count of transportation of illegal aliens resulting in death, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison or death. Facebook/homero.zamoranojr1
Courtroom sketch of alleged Texas migrant death truck driver Homero Zamorano Jr, attending a court hearing in San Antonio. REUTERSZamorano was busted after running away from locals who found him hiding in brush near the scene of Monday’s horror in San Antonio and pointed him out to cops, according to a criminal complaint unsealed earlier Thursday.
Zamorano was reportedly “very high on meth” and Mexican authorities have said he tried to pass himself off as a migrant to avoid arrest in the incident that killed 53 of the migrants packed into the sweltering trailer.
Zamorano was identified through a distinctive black shirt with stripes and a hat that matched surveillance footage from an immigration checkpoint he allegedly passed through earlier, according to the complaint.
A photo posted online Wednesday allegedly shows Zamorano grinning as he leaned out the driver’s window of the 18-wheeler at the Border Patrol checkpoint in Encinal, Texas, about three hours before he allegedly abandoned the truck in a remote area near Lackland Air Force Base.
The trailer carried 64 migrants, 48 of whom were dead when authorities arrived, according to the complaint.
An alleged accomplice, Christian Martinez, 28, was arrested Tuesday and charged with conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death, which also carries the possibility of capital punishment, the feds said.
Emergency personnel survey the scene where 53 migrants were found dead. Billy Calzada/San Antonio Express-News via ZUMA Press Wire
Homero Zamorano Jr allegedly tried to pass himself off as a migrant to avoid being arrested, Mexican authorities say. REUTERSMartinez was busted based on evidence uncovered on Zamorano’s cellphone that showed they discussed the smuggling scheme, according to prosecutors.
It’s unclear when Western Texas US Attorney Ashley Hoff will decide whether to seek capital punishment in the case, with a spokesperson saying no information was available Thursday.
Two Mexican citizens — Juan Claudio D’Luna-Mendez, 23, and Juan Francisco D’Luna-Bilbao, 48 — were also arrested Monday after they left the San Antonio house used as the address to register the truck.
D’Luna-Bilboa was allegedly caught with a handgun stashed in the center console of the truck he was driving and more guns were allegedly found inside the house.
Both men were charged with possession of a weapon by an alien illegally in the US, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence.
They were scheduled to appear in court for bail hearings on Friday but D’Luna-Bilboa’s defense lawyer filed an unopposed motion Thursday to delay his appearance for 30 days.
