After responding to a simple Facebook job advertisement, a Mexican driver found himself under surveillance by drug traffickers in Nogales, receiving threats and later, handcuffed.
For many years, smugglers were recruited by family and friends when they were short on cash and needed work. Now, social media and third-party messaging services have made smuggling recruitment much easier, far-reaching and even anonymous, said Chad Plantz, deputy special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations Tucson.
“I don’t think they ever had too difficult of a time finding people who were willing to smuggle contraband or people,” Plantz said. “But this certainly makes it easier for them.”
Shortly after Amilcar Salgado Flores, 30, said he was interested in taking a job as a driver, he was told to meet two men to discuss the job. If he didn’t, his family would pay the consequences, according to documents filed in federal court in Tucson.
Flores drove straight to the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales on Dec. 16, 2019, after picking up his Dodge Ram truck that he was previously ordered to leave at an undisclosed location.
He was waiting in line to cross into the United States when he received a call from two men who stated they were beside him, closely watching.
Moments later, customs officers discovered 33 pounds of methamphetamine in the rear wall of his vehicle.
Some of the most common online recruitment tools used by smugglers on the Arizona-Mexico border are the popular “buy, trade, or sell” groups on Facebook, according to criminal cases and search warrant affidavits filed in federal court in Tucson.
The roughly 2 billion active users of Facebook can join public or private groups based on their geographic location. If a group is private, users can simply request to be admitted and have instant access to fellow page members.
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In these groups, which are used by thousands of people in Southern Arizona and Northern Sonora, users can sell their products, buy or trade and post advertisements for businesses and job opportunities.
Members of groups like “Tianguis Cajeme” or “Flea Market Cajeme” see new postings and advertisements appear on their feed every minute, with people looking to get rid of their worn-out furniture, others posting photographs of newborn puppies for sale, and some even selling homemade food, promising a fast and warm delivery.
Hidden among the legitimate advertisements are job postings that offer a helping hand to people struggling with money. The accounts posting the advertisements, often written in Spanish, almost always guarantee a “good salary” and some even assure users that they’ll have enough money to buy gifts for Holy Week and Mother’s Day if they take the job.
People posting these advertisements don’t usually show their faces on their accounts. Instead, many have photos of “Santa Muerte,” translated to “Saint Death,” a heavily followed figure in Mexico that is commonly associated with crime and drug trafficking.
While not accepted in the Catholic church, millions still worship Santa Muerte and have a special connection to others who do the same, which provides a feeling of familiarity to the Facebook users.
Drug cartels have taken advantage of these distinctive features and have infiltrated several marketplace groups to conduct their business in plain sight, court documents show.
In one case, a user identified as Mario Hernandez Gonzalez responded to a Facebook advertisement posted in May 2019 in the group page titled “Vacantes y Empleos en Tijuana” or “Open Employment Positions in Tijuana,” which solicited drivers for a job opportunity, according to a search warrant affidavit written by a HSI special agent in June 2019.
The person who posted the advertisement requested “drivers for import” and promised “excellent benefits and good salary.” The advertisement said male drivers were preferred and that all drivers must have legal permission to enter the United States, a vehicle and a valid driver’s license.
Similar advertisements were posted by the same account over 50 times from September 2018 to June 2019, the agent wrote in the affidavit. The advertisements appeared in 12 other groups during that period.
At the end of the posts, the account would offer another option: If you didn’t meet the requirements for the job, you could still receive a bonus for recommending someone else who did, according to court documents.
After expressing interest in the job, Hernandez received a private message from the account with more information on what the job would entail and how to proceed.
Hernandez attempted to drive into the United States at the DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales in his personal vehicle. He was directed to secondary inspection after a K-9 alerted customs officers of a suspicious odor. They conducted a density test and discovered 50 packages of meth in the four doors of the vehicle, according to court documents. The combined weight was 50 pounds.
Hernandez reportedly told investigators he responded to the Facebook advertisement. He also stated that his payment for the job was originally $1,000, but was later reduced to $500.
While a common thread unifying in these advertisements is the ability to earn “good money,” court documents show that large payments aren’t always given, despite the risks of the job.
In a case from June 2018, a user looking for job opportunities in the group “Mercado Libre Nogales Sonora,” or “Free Market Nogales Sonora,” responded to an advertisement from an account that had posted dozens of similar advertisements throughout the course of several months.
The posts varied in requirements and payments, with some reading, “looking for drivers with a visa and own car to work in the USA, good pay, 6,000 dollars” and others, “I need a female to work tomorrow before 11 a.m., 600 dollars, must be older than 18.”
Shortly after the user responded to the advertisement, a private message popped up, offering $650 to smuggle narcotics into the United States, an HSI special agent wrote in an August 2018 search warrant affidavit.
The anonymous user, who met with HSI agents to provide information on the advertisements, stated that six or more users were asked to smuggle narcotics and were successful in doing so.
“Smuggling organizations are always evolving and seeking better ways to do business,” Plantz said. In the years to come, the trend will “continue to grow.”
Users belonging to these marketplace groups may casually scroll past, or even stop and read, these advertisements but they may not be aware of what they insinuate.
When the details about how to make quick cash are vague, “your antenna should go off” and know that it might involve some type of illegal activity, Plantz said.
Especially if the job involves driving across the border, users should be wary of the implications, he added.
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