A human smuggler who repeatedly beat two Chinese brothers while guiding them through the southern Arizona desert was sentenced to six years in federal prison last week.
Miguel Martinez-Meraz, 56, from Jalisco, Mexico, was condemned in Tucson. He pleaded guilty to illegally smuggling a person into the nation for profit and illegally re-entering after being deported.
Martinez-Meraz was apprehended on Jan. 16, 2025, after Border Patrol authorities responded to a 911 call reporting a group in trouble in the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge near Ajo.
The brothers, both Chinese citizens, paid $3,000 apiece to be smuggled into the US. Martinez-Meraz led them through the desert after crossing the border.
When one of the brothers began to slow down, Martinez-Meraz beat him and abandoned him in the desert, authorities alleged. He held the other sibling at knifepoint and threatened to kill him if he did not move. Over the course of five days, the guide frequently thrashed the victim, stole his remaining water, and instructed him to drink his own pee.
After being abandoned in the desert for days, the brother ascended a mountain in search of aid. He spotted the blue light of an emergency rescue beacon, approached it, and dialled 911. Border patrol agents rescued him.
Martinez-Meraz and the other sibling were found independently after both calling for assistance.
Martinez-Meraz was already deported in 2024 and returned to the nation without authorisation. Prosecutors said he committed the acts while on supervised release from a prior federal conviction.
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