US v. Espildora. Smuggler’s Appeal Denied.
 |
The Eleventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has affirmed the conviction and sentence of Ricardo Espildora, who in 2008 was arrested three times; first for attempting to smuggle twenty Cuban nationals into the U.S. on a grossly overloaded boat, then for fleeing from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Kingfisher on a south run to Cuba, and finally for a second attempt to smuggle 15 Cuban nationals on a stolen boat. |
| Espildora was convicted on 21 counts of 8 USC § 1324 (encouraging and inducing aliens to enter the United States) and a single count of 18 USC § 2237 (failure to obey an order by law enforcement officers). He was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment followed by a 3-year term of supervised release.
The court remarked that because Espildora fled from the Coast Guard two weeks after his initial arrest and was located on a stolen vessel in the presence of 15 Cuban nationals only two months after the return of the indictment, “a substantial sentence was necessary to reflect the seriousness of the offense, promote respect for the law, and provide deterrence. “ |
|
Filed Under: Alien & Migrant Interdiction • News • Training
Nice post. I was just reading about this appeal. It’s amazing some of the things these criminals try to use as excuses.