Washington, Nov 10 — Two Mexican boat pilots were sentenced to 70 months in prison each over a maritime smuggling voyage that killed four people, including two Indian children, when an overloaded vessel capsized off California in May 2025.
Jesus Ivan Rodriguez Leyva, 28, and Julio Cesar Zuniga Luna, 32, were sentenced in federal court for piloting the panga that overturned near Del Mar. The Indian children were aged 14 and 10. The other two people killed were Mexican adults, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California.
The pilots admitted the boat carried more passengers than it could safely hold and had neither running lights nor a radio. Its motor developed problems before the fatal crossing, forcing them to return to their launch site in Mexico.
“Today’s sentences reflect the serious consequences of placing greed above human life,” US Attorney Adam Gordon said.
Rodriguez and Zuniga pleaded guilty on April 14, 2026, to two counts of attempted bringing in illegal aliens resulting in death and two counts of attempted bringing in illegal aliens for financial gain.
According to their plea agreements, they piloted the vessel from Mexico into the United States on May 5, 2025, with 19 migrants aboard, including three minors.
The boat departed from Popotla, Mexico. After its motor developed problems, the pilots returned to the launch site, where it was quickly repaired. They then set out again for the United States.
As they approached the beach at Del Mar, the pilots told passengers to remove their life jackets so they could leave the boat more easily and run to waiting vehicles, according to the plea agreements.
About 200 yards from shore, the motor failed again. The vessel capsized in the surf as onlookers watched and filmed the incident and law enforcement was notified.
Homeland Security Investigations, the US Coast Guard, local lifeguards and the US Border Patrol launched a joint search and rescue operation.
Four migrants found on the beach were taken for medical care. Three others, including one minor, were found dead at the scene.
“Human smuggling organizations continue to show a reckless disregard for human life,” said Justin De La Torre, chief patrol agent of the US Border Patrol’s San Diego sector.
Plea documents described a network in which people in Mexico recruited drivers to meet arriving boats, conceal passengers in vehicles and take them to holding houses before moving them to their intended destinations. The drivers coordinated with conspirators in both Mexico and the United States.