PHOENIX — A 22-year-old Phoenix woman has been sentenced to one year in prison for recruiting people to participate in human smuggling.
Destiney Rae Montoya was sentenced last week in federal court after she pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport illegal aliens for profit, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office of Arizona.
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: Mujer de Phoenix sentenciada por usar redes sociales para reclutar traficantes de personas
Prosecutors said Montoya recruited drivers through social media to transport migrants further into the U.S. after they entered the country illegally. Montoya's offense included a sentencing enhancement since investigators determined she was a coordinator in the operation.
Law enforcement officials have been warning Arizonans for the last year about the dangers of young people getting recruited through social media to participate in human smuggling.
Up to 22 individuals were indicted earlier this year in a human smuggling ring that was facilitated through advertisements posted on Snapchat.
Children as young as 12 have been caught by law enforcement in southern Arizona for attempting to transport migrants near the border.
In 2019, a teenage boy died in the Arizona desert after he got lost while attempting to guide a group of migrants.
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