A Texas woman has pleaded guilty to smuggling unaccompanied migrant children into the United States, sometimes using candy laced with THC to sedate them, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Dianne Guadian, 33, and three other members of a smuggling organization brought unaccompanied children between the ages of 5 and 13 illegally into the United States from Juárez, Mexico. The drivers would present U.S. documents to inspecting officers, falsely claiming the documents belonged to the children and that they were the children's parents, according to the DOJ.
Once inside the United States, the children were then transported to El Paso, Texas.
During one smuggling event, a child was taken to a local hospital and diagnosed with THC poisoning.
Guadian pleaded to four counts of aiding and abetting bringing of aliens without authorization for profit, federal court records show. She faces a minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
One of Guadian’s co-defendants, Manuel Valenzuela, was sentenced on July 1 to five years in prison for his role in the child smuggling scheme, according to the DOJ.
Susana Guadian and Daniel Guadian, who are husband and wife, both 50 years old and Mexican citizens, were also arrested on smuggling charges in relation to the smuggling operation, El Paso Times previously reported. Dianne Guadian is their daughter and is a U.S. citizen.
“Dianne Guadian was just one conspirator in a sickening smuggling operation, toying with the lives of children by drugging them in order to bring them into the United States from Mexico,” said U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas.
“Criminal human smugglers exploit vulnerable children in horrific ways,” said Chief Patrol Agent Jesse Munoz of U.S. Border Patrol El Paso Sector. “I am glad our Border Patrol agents investigating this case were able to contribute to the successful prosecution of a criminal who will be held accountable for this terrible crime.”
Natassia Paloma may be reached at npaloma@gannett.com, @NatassiaPaloma on X, natassia_paloma on Instagram, and Natassia Paloma on Facebook.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Texas woman pleads guilty to smuggling sedated migrant children
