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Nineteen human trafficking victims recovered during traffic stop in Albany

All 20 people, including the driver, were undocumented immigrants from Mexico, Brazil, Guatemala, Honduras and Ecuador.
Credit: Shackelford County Sheriff's Office

ALBANY, Texas — A Mexican national was arrested after a traffic stop in Albany Sunday. Nineteen undocumented immigrants being smuggled were found in his vehicle.

According to the Shackelford County Sheriff's Office, after a vehicle was reported to dispatch for driving erratically and possibly having a drunk driver, a suspect was found with the 19 people during a traffic stop in Albany.

The vehicle description, a white Ford F150, was broadcast to all officers on duty in attempt to find it prior to the stop. City of Albany Police Officer Purpura saw the suspect vehicle traveling east on Main Street, at which time the traffic stop was initiated.

Francisco Alfredo Lopez-Cubillas, 34, a citizen of Mexico, was identified as the driver of the vehicle. During the traffic stop, officers noticed several people in the cab of the pickup truck as well as blankets with several sets of legs sticking out from under the blankets.

A further search allowed officers to recover 19 individuals from the vehicle, most of whom were hidden under a bolted-down cover on the bed of the pickup.

All 20 people, including Lopez-Cubillas, were undocumented immigrants from Mexico, Brazil, Guatemala, the Honduras and Ecuador.

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol took custody of the 19 trafficking victims, and Lopez-Cubillas was the only person charged.

He remained in the Shackelford County Jail at the time of the release from the SCSO. Lopez-Cubillas is charged with 19 counts of trafficking of a person, each count hold a bond of $8,500 - a total bond amount of $161,500. Lopez-Cubillas currently has a detainer placed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Shackelford County Sheriff’s Office, the Albany Police Department, the Texas Department of Public Safety and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol all provided assistance during the traffic stop.

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