12 human smuggling victims rescued from box truck by HPD patrol officer; 3 arrested

Houston Police Officer Chris Meade, left, listens as HPD Lt. Jessica Anderson, center, speaks along with JoAnne Musick, right, of the Harris County District Attorney, during a media conference at the District Attorney office,1201 Franklin, Monday, July 10, 2017, in Houston. Officer Meade discovered a box truck Sunday afternoon with a dozen persons, including a minor girl, locked inside the cargo bay. All of the persons who were smuggled are believed to be from Latin America. Three people are charged with human smuggling in the case. They are Priscila Perez Beltran, 21, Adela Alvarez, 26, and Nelson Cortes Garcia, 27. less Houston Police Officer Chris Meade, left, listens as HPD Lt. Jessica Anderson, center, speaks along with JoAnne Musick, right, of the Harris County District Attorney, during a media conference at the District ... more Photo: Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle Photo: Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 30 Caption Close 12 human smuggling victims rescued from box truck by HPD patrol officer; 3 arrested 1 / 30 Back to Gallery

A Houston police officer chasing routine calls Sunday afternoon saved 12 people who were being smuggled inside of a locked cargo truck where the temperature reached 100 degrees, authorities said Monday.

After canvassing a strip mall's parking lot, the patrol officer heard the dozen trapped people – 10 men, one woman and a 16-year-old girl – banging on the walls of the unventilated truck trying to attract someone's attention to let them out.

With no food and a dwindling water supply, the officer managed to remove the lock in time and save the people who had been trapped inside for about 12 hours.

"Thirty more minutes and this could have been a dozen homicide cases," said Tom Berg, Harris County First Assistant District Attorney.

Three people are now in jail after officers rescued the victims, including the 16-year-old girl, from the locked, cargo bay of a box truck parked in west Houston.

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Officer Chris Meade first discovered the Penske rental truck parked at a strip center at 7636 Harwin, off the Westpark Tollway, said JoAnne Musick, a county attorney for sex crimes and human trafficking.

According to Houston police and county attorneys, the 12 people inside the truck were undocumented and paid to be smuggled into the U.S. from various Latin American countries, including El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico, said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Greg Palmore.

Houston police and the District Attorney's office held a press conference at the Criminal Justice Center to commend Meade for his heroics and alertness in responding to such a potentially deadly situation.

The officer was at the conference but deferred all questions to his superiors as he stood silent and stoic in his uniform.

Authorities speaking on his behalf said that Meade noticed "something was off about the box truck." Meade was on the heels of another routine call when the cargo truck and activity around it caught his attention.

READ ALSO: Feds will now target relatives who smuggled children

"Things just did not appear correct to him," Musick said. "He was already on alert. As he entered the parking lot, there was some activity afoot and this drew his attention even more to the area."

He noticed padlocks on the truck and no signs of a driver even though the engine was still warm, Musick said.

Simply, Meade was drawn to the rental truck "because it was sitting in a site where it shouldn't have been," she said.

The three suspects – Priscila Perez Beltran, 21; Nelson Cortes Garcia, 27; and Adela Alvarez, 26 – have each been charged with two counts of human smuggling likely to cause injury or death and one count of human smuggling involving a minor.

They were arrested on site by Meade and other officers as they attempted to flee the scene.

Musick said surveillance cameras show the three suspects entering and exiting the truck throughout the afternoon.

They face charges including smuggling of persons, which were elevated from a 3rd to a 2nd degree charge because the case involves a minor and because the victims was placed in serious harm, Musick said.

If convicted, they face two to 20 years in prison.

According to the DA's office the suspects have no criminal records, but the investigation into each of their backgrounds is in the beginning stages.

The alleged smugglers are suspected of having entered the country without documentation, Palmore added.

Neither Beltran, Cortes Garcia, nor Alvarez are U.S. citizens, according to court documents. They are each being held on a $300,000 bail and are due to appear in court Tuesday.

The investigation remains active and authorities said they won't release additional information to avoid any potential suspects fleeing the country and derailing their case.

Mary Magness with Homeland Security said the 12 victims may be detained until a trial is held. She said each of the victims could serve as material witnesses as the investigation unfolds.

"Human trafficking and human smuggling are a big deal in the city of Houston," said Lt. Jessica Anderson of HPD's human trafficking unit. "Officer Meade did a fantastic job of being aware of his surroundings ... thereby saving 12 lives."