Man found guilty in human smuggling case

Rocksprings—Following a week-long trial, Defendant Jhan Carlos Fernandez (age 24 of New York) was sentenced by a jury to 99 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Institutional Division for the offense of Human Smuggling Causing a Death with a maximum fine assessed at $10,000. 

Fernandez was found to have used a deadly weapon in the commission of the offense and will serve a minimum of 30 years before becoming eligible for parole. 

Fernandez was found guilty by an Edwards County jury on Thursday, May 22, after two and a half days of testimony. Fernandez was also found guilty of four counts of Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon. For each of these offenses, the jury sentenced Fernandez to 20 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Institutional Division, the maximum sentence available, in addition to a $10,000 fine for each count. 

District Attorney Tonya Spaeth Ahlschwede prosecuted Fernandez's case with the assistance of her trial team, including assistant district attorneys Havana Schmidt and Andy Murr. 

The evidence showed that on the night of February 27-28, 2023, Fernandez picked up five migrants in Maverick County. 

Later, Edwards County Deputy Sheriff Felix Ruiz observed as Fernandez drove into the city of Rocksprings at approximately 1 a.m., traveling 71 mph in a 55 mph zone. Before law enforcement could initiate a traffic stop, Fernandez accelerated and failed to navigate a turn on U.S. Highway 377, flipping the car into the lot of Zapata's Garage, a local business. 

Several victims were ejected from the vehicle. Victim Yensy Galvez Hernandez of Honduras died at the scene. One survivor of the crash testified that Fernandez directed him to ride in the vehicle's trunk. 

The other victims in the crash survived thanks to the heroic efforts of Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Manuel Banda and Deputy Ruiz, with the support of additional law enforcement officers from Edwards County Sheriff's Office, U.S. Border Patrol, Texas DPS, and Edwards County EMS. 

The surviving victims and the defendant were stabilized, treated, and transported for emergency care at different area hospitals thanks to the swift response of Edwards County EMS director Patrick Hickey, AEMT's Rachel Escamilla and Sondee Moreno, and Nueces Canyon EMS director Lisa Carlisle. 

Testimony from doctors and experts concluded that First Responders' efforts saved the life of another severely injured victim. 

"The quick actions of law enforcement and EMS in the middle of the night, without regard for who it was they were treating, saved lives," Ahlschwede said.

During sentencing, the evidence showed that Fernandez had a significant criminal record in New York. The State asked the jury for the maximum sentence on all charges to send the message that human smuggling shouldn't happen here or anywhere. 

"This is the second Human Smuggling Death trial in state court that we are aware of in the State of Texas, the first such trial in Junction, Texas, in February, resulting in a conviction and 99-year sentence," Ahlschwede said. "The combined efforts of multiple law enforcement agencies working together to assemble the facts led to a jury being able to decide how to apply the evidence to arrive at guilty verdicts for all charges. 

"Human smuggling cases have become all-to-common in jurisdictions like ours, which are heavily impacted by border crime. We learned during testimony that, like in so many of these kinds of cases, money was the motivating factor for the defendant to put the lives of so many people – those being smuggled, our law enforcement, and other innocent drivers on the road – in danger. We will continue to marshal all our resources to prosecute human smugglers to the maximum extent permitted by law."

SOURCE Office of Edwards County District Attorney