Last week, a federal jury found Olegario Lares-De La Rosa, 29, of Mexico, guilty of Conspiracy to Commit Hostage Taking, Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens for Profit, and two counts of Transportation of an Illegal Alien for Profit.
Lares-De La Rosa previously pleaded guilty to Felon in Possession of a Firearm on June 9, 2022. Sentencing is scheduled for May 4, 2023, before United States District Judge Jennifer G. Zipps.
The investigation in this case began on April 6, 2022, when Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) received a tip from an individual in New York. The informant told HSI investigators that he had received a call from his cousins, undocumented noncitizens, who said they were being held captive and that their captors demanded $16,000 for their release.
The cousins were detained by three armed men after they crossed illegally into the United States. The armed captors took the victims’ cellphones and transported them to a house where they were held captive for several days. Each evening, the door to their room was screwed shut so they could not escape. On April 8, 2022, Lares-De La Rosa picked up the cousins from the house and brought them to the place where they were to be exchanged for the $16,000 payment.
That same day, Lares-De La Rosa’s co-conspirator, Borboa-Ruiz, met with undercover agents in Tucson to collect the $16,000 payment. After counting the money, Borboa-Ruiz made a call stating that “they were good.” Less than a minute later, the cousins walked single file out of a black Hyundai driven by Lares-De La Rosa. Borboa-Ruiz was immediately arrested.
While the agents were arresting Borboa-Ruiz, Lares-De La Rosa sped away in the Hyundai, leading agents on a high-speed vehicle chase. During the pursuit, Lares-De La Rosa attempted to discard his 9mm pistol by throwing it out of the car. He then bailed out of the Hyundai while it was still in drive, narrowly missing being struck by the vehicle. Lares-De La Rosa then ran into a wash and through a residential neighborhood before he was arrested.
On February 2, 2023, Borboa-Ruiz, 28, of Mexico, pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Hostage Taking and Illegal Alien in Possession of a Firearm. Sentencing for Borboa-Ruiz is scheduled for April 25, 2023, before Judge Zipps.
