Man charged with human smuggling on I-75 in Bushnell, FL, enroute to Tampa, FL
Traffic stop photos by FHP; mugshot of Soto Perez by Sumter County Sheriff's Office
Sumter County, Florida - A traffic stop, due to illegal window tint, at 2:26 pm, Nov. 4, resulted in the arrest of a Phoenix, Arizona/Mexico man for human smuggling. The traffic stop was conducted on a white 2007 Nissan Armada sport utility vehicle (SUV), traveling south on I-75 near the 310 milepost in Sumter County, Florida near Bushnell, by members of FHP Troop C's Contraband Interdiction Unit.
Upon the request of the troopers, the driver, 23 year-old Esvil Miguel Soto Perez of Phoenix, Arizona, presented a Mexican Identification Card, but no driver’s license. Troopers detained Soto Perez for the driver’s license violation and located a large sum of U.S. currency on his person, along with several receipts that indicated large transfers of currency to Mexico.
Inside the vehicle, driver Soto Perez carried four Hispanic passengers, all unknown to one another, who had paid for transport to the Tampa area. They were transferred to the U.S. Border Patrol, which confirmed that the four passengers had entered the United States illegally.
Soto Perez was placed under arrest, charged with having no valid driver's license and four counts of human smuggling (as per Florida Statute 787.07.1), and transported to the Sumter County Detention Center in Bushnell, Florida.