The Houston Police Department found more than 90 people huddled in a two-story house in the 12200 block of Chessington Drive in what appears to be a human smuggling case. The discovery was made after the Department's homicide division worked through the night to locate a possible kidnapping victim and obtain a search warrant for the home.
HDP assistant chief D.B. Edwards stated that officers were surprised to find that many victims inside the residence. The individuals were crammed together in both the upstairs and downstairs areas. None of the neighbors had any reason to suspect what was going on in the home.
There were about 5 female victims; the rest were males. No children were found in the home; the youngest victim appeared to be about 20 years of age.
Some of the victims said that they had not been given food or water in a while, but no serious injuries were reported. However, some reported that they were unable to smell or taste, raising concerns about possible COVID infections.
Police will begin working on separating the victims from those who may have been involved in the smuggling offense. Edwards said that the investigation was still ongoing, and they had no further information on who was responsible.
A collateral consequence of the new perceived Biden Administration stance on immigration is an uptick in human trafficking and alien harboring cases. In Texas, human smuggling matters have increased exponentially. At The Law Offices of Jed Silverman, we have seen about a 30% rise in them since January of 2021. Because human smuggling is a state and federal crime, cases are being filed in both state and federal courts throughout Texas.
If you've been accused of a crime in Houston, reach out to our team by calling (713) 597-2221 or submitting an online contact form.