Yuma Border Patrol rescue migrants, man sentenced to prison for human smuggling

Rafael Almanza-Guillen of Mexico smuggles three undocumented noncitizens into the United States, resulting with one death

PHOENIX, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - A man was sentenced to 63 months in prison, along with five years of supervised release for illegally smuggling three immigrants into the U.S., resulting in one death.

Rafael Almanza-Guillen is a 41-year-old man from Mexico and on August 1, 2021, he smuggled three undocumented immigrants from Mexico into the U.S.

Almanza-Guillen took them through the desert on foot with the temperatures averaging 106 degrees Fahrenheit and four of them ended up stranded.

One of the immigrants eventually passed away due to hypothermia, due to abnormally high body temperature.

The Yuma Border Patrol then rescued Almanza-Guillen and the two immigrants from being stranded in the desert without anymore food and water.