Texas Border Business
DEL RIO – The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) arrested an illegal immigrant from Nicaragua for human smuggling and apprehended a special interest alien (SIA) from China during an Operation Lone Star traffic stop in Maverick Co.
On Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, just after 11:30 p.m., a DPS Trooper stopped a gray Toyota Camry on US 277 for a traffic violation. During the stop, the Trooper discovered four illegal immigrants, all dressed in camouflage, being smuggled by the driver. Of the four illegal immigrants, one was identified as Beibei Liu, 34, a SIA from China.
The driver, Juan Alfonso Merlo Ibarra, 35, an illegal immigrant from Nicaragua, was arrested and charged with four counts of smuggling of persons and booked into the Maverick Co. Jail.
Liu and three other illegal immigrants, from Mexico, including a juvenile, were referred to Border Patrol.
Information source: Texas DPS
