CBP captures known human trafficker

U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced on Friday that Martel Valencia-Cortez, a known criminal and human trafficker, had turned himself in to authorities at the San Ysidro Port of Entry.

Martel Valencia-Cortez is a known human trafficker and has been linked to and involved with numerous human smuggling operations since at least 1999.

Valencia-Cortez came under international scrutiny after a Nov. 15 incident during which he allegedly assaulted a Border Patrol agent by hurling a softball-sized rock during a human smuggling attempt near Jacumba, California.

In response, U.S. Border Patrol – San Diego Sector launched a bi-national media and public outreach campaign to expose Valencia-Cortez.

“It is clear that the relentless effort by Joint Task Force-West partners pressured Martel Valencia-Cortez into a corner, forcing him to surrender to his arrest,” Richard A. Barlow, chief patrol agent of the San Diego Sector, said. “This effort should send a clear message to anyone who would carry out the deplorable act of assaulting a federal agent. I applaud the collective fortitude displayed by all involved Joint Task Force-West components and the government of Mexico for the arrest of this individual.”

Valencia-Cortez has been accused of multiple incidents during alleged human trafficking incidents, including reckless, wrong-way driving along local freeways into oncoming traffic, threatening and brandishing weapons to intimidate smuggled aliens, assaulting agents, and resisting arrest.