Woman accused of holding immigrants captive

McALLEN — A woman accused of holding seven undocumented immigrants for ransom in a stash house north of Edinburg is set to appear before a federal judge Tuesday.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Maria Soto Rivera, 48, on Wednesday, after one of her alleged captives led them to a residence along U.S. Highway 281 in the tiny community of Faysville.

The man told investigators he had been held there with as many as 30 other illegal immigrants at one point by a woman he knew only as "America." She would not let them leave until their relatives paid more than $1,400 in additional smuggling fees, the man said, according to a criminal complaint filed in Soto's case.

He was only released after the woman felt satisfied he could not pay the money, the document states, but not before she threatened to have him and his family killed if he reported his captivity to police.

When U.S. Border Patrol agents arrived at the residence Tuesday, only seven undocumented immigrants remained in the home.

Soto, who is herself in the country illegally, told ICE agents that she used the alias "America" but had only been hired to deliver food to the residence several times a week, the criminal complaint says. She said she never asked if the occupants were undocumented but assumed that they were.

Soto now faces charges of transporting and harboring undocumented aliens. If convicted, she could face up to 10 years in a federal penitentiary.

It was not immediately clear Friday whether she had retained or been assigned an attorney.

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Jeremy Roebuck covers courts and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4437.