step.- A San Elizario man was sentenced in federal court in El Paso to 140 months in federal prison — 11 years and 8 months — for conspiring to kidnap and ransom migrants.
According to court documents, 25-year-old Luis Lorenzo Salas operated a safe house where victims of human trafficking from Mexico were being held. Salas made a video of himself wearing a mask and pointing a rifle at the victim.
A screenshot of the video was sent to the victim’s family along with threatening messages demanding they pay $10,000 or remove the victim’s ears and fingers. Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) agents located and rescued the victim along with eight other foreigners, all of whom were unharmed. Salas was arrested on April 17, 2023. He pleaded guilty on August 29, 2023 to one count of conspiracy to commit hostage-taking.
“This defendant has caused serious and lasting harm that will haunt his trafficking victims and their families for the rest of their lives,” said Jaime Esparza, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas. “Thanks to our partners at HSI, the victims in this case are safe and we put another smuggler out of business for the next decade.”
“Human traffickers who exploit people for personal gain and use threats and violence to extort ransoms will be held accountable, as this ruling makes clear,” HSI Division Acting Special Agent in Charge Jason T. Stevens said. From El Paso. “Human trafficking represents a threat to national security and ultimately endangers vulnerable populations.”
HSI investigated the case. Assistant US Attorney Matthew Engelbaum prosecuted the case.
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