They Paid a Fortune to Reach America — Instead, They Got a Broken Engine, Hidden Cocaine, and Federal Prison: Honduran Man Sentenced in Human and Drug Smuggling Plot

A Honduran man has been sentenced to more than four years in prison for his role in an international smuggling operation that attempted to bring people and cocaine into the United States by boat, federal officials said.

Olvin Javier Velasquez-Maldonado, 40, was sentenced after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. Prosecutors said he worked with at least six others in a scheme that sought to smuggle more than 20 Honduran nationals and about 24 kilograms of cocaine from Honduras to Louisiana in February 2022.

According to court records, the group used a sportfishing vessel, the M/V Pop, to carry the passengers and drugs from Utila, Honduras, to Cocodrie, Louisiana. Many of the migrants allegedly paid as much as $20,000 each to be transported to the United States.

“The defendant and his co-conspirators attempted to illegally bring aliens and approximately 24 kilograms of cocaine into the United States by boat,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
“Along with his co-conspirators, Olvin Javier Velasquez- Maldonado conspired to flagrantly violate our federal immigration and controlled substances laws by attempting to illegally bring in more than 20 Honduran aliens and approximately 24 kilograms of cocaine to Louisiana,” said U.S. Attorney David I. Courcelle for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

During the trip, the vessel suffered engine trouble. Before a fuel run could be completed, the U.S. Coast Guard intercepted the boat off the Louisiana coast and brought it to shore. A search later uncovered about 24 kilograms of cocaine hidden beneath a mattress in the captain’s quarters. Prosecutors said Velasquez-Maldonado had packaged the drugs, and his fingerprints were found on the wrapping.

Velasquez-Maldonado was extradited from Honduras in April 2025. He later pleaded guilty before sentencing.

$100 a Head, 12 Migrants, and a High-Speed Chase: Indian National Pleads Guilty to Smuggling People Across Canada Border Into New York

An Indian national has pleaded guilty to federal charges accusing him of helping smuggle a dozen people across the Canadian border into the United States, prosecutors said.

Shivam, 22, admitted in federal court that he helped coordinate a smuggling operation that moved migrants from India across the northern border into northern New York between October 2024 and June 2025. Prosecutors said he arranged drivers to pick up migrants after they crossed the border and transport them to stash houses and hotels in the Plattsburgh area.

According to court documents, Shivam also paid drivers for each person they moved and expected to be paid for his own role in the operation. Prosecutors said that on Jan. 25, 2025, he directed a co-conspirator to smuggle 12 people from India and the United Kingdom from Canada into the United States, paying $100 per migrant.

The operation unraveled the next day when U.S. Border Patrol agents tried to stop two vehicles traveling together near the border. Both vehicles sped away, leading to a pursuit. One ran off the road and became disabled, while the other was later stopped in Mooers, New York. Investigators said the vehicles contained 12 illegal aliens.

Shivam pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and three counts of alien smuggling for financial gain. He is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 4 and faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 15 years.

The case remains pending through sentencing.

He Swore to Protect and Serve. Instead, He Preyed on a Child 8,000 Miles Away: Wisconsin Officer’s Double Life Ends in 13-Year Prison Sentence

A Wisconsin man has been sentenced to 13 years in federal prison for using the internet to coerce and entice a minor in the Philippines into sexual exploitation, authorities said.

Bradley D. Hounsell, 44, of Oshkosh, was also ordered to serve seven years of supervised release after prison. Federal prosecutors said Hounsell used a social media platform to pay for sexually explicit images and videos involving children and escalated his requests after being told a roughly 13-year-old girl was available.

According to court documents, Hounsell asked for the child to pose in sexually suggestive positions and offered payment for a video depicting the child being sexually abused. Prosecutors said that after he sent money, he received a video showing an adult sexually abusing a nude child. Investigators also said he continued offering money for additional exploitative material.

Law enforcement later recovered the video and other evidence from Hounsell’s phone during a search of his Wisconsin home. Before his arrest, Hounsell worked as a correctional officer with the Wisconsin Department of Corrections.