Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) officers apprehended a man in Del Rio, Texas on Friday for his alleged participation in smuggling a five-year-old girl across the border from Mexico. Following a tip that border surveillance had observed a man carrying a child over the Rio Grande, a DPS trooper stopped a Dodge pickup truck. DPS spokesperson, Lt. Chris Olivarez, informed Fox News that after being carried across the border, the young girl was placed in a different smuggler's vehicle and transported to a hotel. Law enforcement monitored the pickup truck until initiating a traffic stop.

The girl, identified as being from Mexico, was found inside the truck along with her mother, Dolores Lopez, a temporary North Carolina resident originally from Mexico. The child's appearance matched the surveillance footage, including a distinctive bow she was wearing. Lopez admitted to finding a smuggling operation online and paying them $8,000 to bring her daughter into the United States.

The driver, identified as Roman Ibarra Rojo, a Mexican national, was arrested and charged with smuggling a minor under 18. Rojo confessed to being promised $1,000 for his role in the smuggling operation. DPS officials confirmed Rojo had a prior arrest for smuggling in 2022.

Lopez and her daughter were handed over to U.S. Border Patrol. Authorities recommended that Lopez be charged with child endangerment, leaving the final decision on prosecution to the district attorney.