HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. — A pair of Florida traffic stops turned into human smuggling investigations.
Florida Highway Patrol stopped a minivan around 3 p.m. Monday on I-75 in Hernando County. Troopers say they pulled over the 2013 Toyota Sienna for a fraudulent Texas temporary tag violation.
During that traffic stop, the troopers say they detained the driver, who was unlicensed. Two passengers, both in the country illegally, told authorities the driver was paid $1,500 to transport them to Florida, according to law enforcement.
The undocumented passengers were turned over to U.S. Border Patrol.
Investigators identified the driver as 25-year-old Juan Carlos Cueva Cano of Honduras. He was arrested and taken to the Hernando County Jail, where FHP says he is charged with human smuggling, not having a valid driver's license, not having proper vehicle registration and possessing a counterfeit tag.
Around the same time as the first stop, FHP was stopping a 2009 Ford E-350 Passenger Van on I-75 in Sumter County. Troopers say they pulled over the van for a window tint violation.
During the stop, troopers say they learned the driver – 37-year-old Gustavo Santiago Cruz, of Mexico – had a valid Washington driver's license but a suspended Florida license. They detained him.
Troopers interviewed four male passengers. Investigators say all four were undocumented individuals from Mexico and had paid the driver $200 each to be taken to Florida. The passengers were turned over to Border Patrol.
Cruz was arrested and taken to the Sumter County Jail, where he was charged with human smuggling and driving with a suspended license.
The nonprofit American Immigration Council, which has advocated for the rights of migrants, says more than 425,000 American citizens in Florida live with at least one relative who is in the country illegally.
"775,000 undocumented immigrants comprised 18 percent of the immigrant population and 4 percent of the total state population in 2016," the Council writes on its website, citing Pew research.
According to the New York Times, the Biden administration recently released updated guidance, barring immigration-related arrests in "protected areas," which his team designated as areas like hospitals, schools and places of worship.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has taken a stricter stance on individuals who enter the country illegally. The governor has prohibited state agencies from helping relocate undocumented people who arrive in Florida and instructed FHP to detain any planes, buses or cars reasonably believed to be moving people illegally.
DeSantis has sued the Biden administration over federal immigration policies.
