Texas Trooper Finds 25 Migrants Hidden in Box Truck

In George West, Texas, a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper discovered 25 migrants hidden inside a cramped, poorly ventilated crawl space of a box truck during a minor crash investigation. The migrants, including 12 men, 12 women, and an 11-year-old child, came from various countries such as Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, India, Cuba, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic. The driver, Silvia Patricia Santamaria, 43, from Houston, was arrested and charged with 25 counts of human smuggling. The migrants were given medical evaluations before being handed over to U.S. Border Patrol. The discovery was prompted by a concerned citizen reporting the crash at a truck stop along Interstate 37. Law enforcement found the migrants concealed behind mattresses and inside a crawl space within the truck's wall.