Guyanese Charged With Human Smuggling
December 18, 2009
CaribWorldNews, WASHINGTON, D.C., Fri. Dec. 18, 2009: A 52-year-old Guyanese woman was yesterday indicted by a Texas grand jury for her role in smuggling four Indian nationals into the U.S.
Annita Devi Gerald, aka Annita Rampersad, was on Thursday charged in a nine-count indictment by a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Texas.
Gerald was arrested by ICE special agents in Houston on Nov. 17, 2009, and has been held without bond since that time.
According to the indictment, from approximately April 2009 to Nov. 17, 2009, Gerald and others conspired to smuggle four Indian nationals into the United States.
Allegedly, Gerald and her co-conspirators fraudulently obtained Belizean visas for the Indian nationals and escorted them from India to Belize, moving through various countries in Central and South America. Gerald allegedly provided lodging for all four Indian nationals in Belize while further smuggling arrangements were made.
In August 2009, Gerald allegedly arranged transportation for one of the Indian nationals to cross the border from Belize into Mexico where he met with Gerald`s co-conspirator, who escorted him through Mexico. In Monterrey, Mexico, Gerald`s co-conspirator paid a Mexico-based smuggler to illegally transport the individual across the Mexico-U.S. border to Houston.
After making these arrangements, Gerald`s co-conspirator allegedly flew to Houston where the co-conspirator received the Indian national at a motel approximately 10 days later. The smugglers who delivered the Indian national to Gerald`s co-conspirator in Houston allegedly demanded and received a smuggling payment prior to releasing him. The Indian national smuggled to Houston is currently being administratively detained by ICE, awaiting removal. The whereabouts of the other three Indian nationals allegedly harbored by Gerald in Belize are currently unknown.
If convicted, Gerald faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for conspiracy, and 10 years in prison for each of the four counts of encouraging and inducing aliens to come to the United States for profit. Additionally, she is subject to the maximum penalty for each of the four counts of bringing aliens to the United States for profit, which is 10 years for a first or second violation, and 15 years for any other violation. She is also subject to a fine of up to $250,000.
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