ICE special agents arrest 5 members of alleged alien smuggling conspiracy

Man who allegedly fired at Socorro police barricaded himself in ‘drop house’

Five members of an alleged local alien smuggling organization were arrested Tuesday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents, following a multi-agency investigation into a shooting incident.

In addition to ICE, other agencies also involved in the investigation included: U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Border Patrol, El Paso County Sheriff’s Department and Socorro, Texas, Police Department.

The law enforcement agencies responded to a reported shooting incident between a 22-year-old man and a Socorro police officer early Tuesday morning in San Elizario, Texas. When the officer conducted a routine traffic stop on a Chevrolet Monte Carlo, the driver fired at the officer; the officer returned fire. No one was injured during the shooting incident.

ICE agents arrested two women and two men at a house in San Elizario, where the alleged shooter had barricaded himself. The house in the 1200 block of Las Pompas was used as a “drop house,” or location where the alien smuggling organization harbored illegal aliens waiting to be taken to their final destinations. The alleged shooter, Luke Herrada, was later arrested by Socorro police after he fled the drop house. He is charged with criminal attempted capital murder and jailed in lieu of $250,000 bond.