CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 45-year-old Houston man has been
ordered to prison in Corpus Christi federal court following his conviction for
transporting an undocumented Chinese national, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K.
Patrick.
The jury deliberated for approximately two hours before
convicting Torrie Franklin Feb. 4 following a one-day trial.
Today, U.S. District Judge David S. Morales ordered Franklin
to serve a 42-month sentence to be immediately followed by three years of
supervised release.
On Nov. 12, 2019, Franklin drove a blue four-door sedan into
the primary inspection lane at the Border Patrol (BP) Checkpoint located near
Falfurrias. Upon his arrival, authorities conducted a routine inspection, at
which time a K-9 alerted to the trunk of the vehicle. There, they found an
undocumented Chinese national.
At the time of his arrest, Franklin told authorities he had
encountered the man at a gas station. Franklin claimed the Chinese national
asked for a ride to Houston, despite not knowing any English. He also said the
man asked to ride in the trunk as opposed to inside the vehicle.
At trial, the jury heard from the Chinese national who said
Franklin was the person who placed him inside the trunk. They also heard
excerpts of Franklin’s phone calls in which he admitted his role in the
offense.
The defense attempted to convince the jury that Franklin was
merely a good Samaritan just providing a ride. They did not believe his claims
and ultimately found him guilty as charged.
Franklin has been and will remain in custody pending
transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near
future.
BP conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neel
Kapur and Barbara De Pena are prosecuting the case.
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