The suspected driver of a truck in Texas that found more than 50 dead migrants on Monday was under the influence of methamphetamine when police found him. So says Henry Cuellar, the Democratic representative for the district that includes the eastern part of San Antonio. Cuellar bases this on legal documents that he has seen. Methamphetamine, or ‘meth’, is a powerful synthetic drug that strongly influences the user’s behavior.
The driver, a Texas resident, was hiding near the abandoned truck, but police found him anyway. After his arrest, he was found to have traces of meth in his blood. The driver has since been charged with participation in deadly people smuggling. If found guilty, he could be sentenced to life imprisonment or even the death penalty.
Tuesday were already two Mexican citizens indicted in connection with the found dead migrants. The two are charged with deadly attempted human smuggling and illegal possession of weapons, court documents state.
The 53 migrants who died, all believed to be from Central American countries, were discovered by the US immigration service on the outskirts of the South Texas city of San Antonio, about 250 kilometers from the Mexican border. The temperature at that time was 39.4 degrees Celsius. Authorities said there was no water or air conditioning in the cargo hold where the migrants were.
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