A man was caught near Bazan Road. A trooper says the man admitted he was getting paid $100 a person to lead a group north. The trooper wrote it in an arrest affidavit.

His name is Mario Antonio Pena Hernandez. He now faces a charge of smuggling of persons. The affidavit lists it as a second-degree felony. That is a serious charge in Texas.

The charge also has the words "pecuniary benefit." That is a legal way to say a person did it for money.

Trooper Eddie Serrato-Perez signed the affidavit. He wrote that he was working with the Brush Team in Starr County. It was Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026.

It started on the radio. The trooper was tuned in to the Border Patrol channel. He wrote that he heard of "bodies going north near Bazan Road." In his report, the word "bodies" means people.

He headed to the area. As he got close, he heard agents say they had already caught the group.

Later, a Border Patrol agent got in touch with him. The agent told him one man in the group had owned up to being the brush guide. A brush guide is the person who leads a group on foot.

The trooper went to the Rio Grande City Border Patrol Station. There, he talked with the man. The trooper names him as Mario Antonio Pena Hernandez.

Here is what the trooper says the man told him.

Pena Hernandez admitted he was the brush guide, the trooper wrote. He said he was guiding four people. He said they crossed the river at about 1:30 in the morning.

He said they walked for four to five hours. The trooper wrote that Pena Hernandez admitted to "getting paid one hundred dollars per person."

Pena Hernandez also said a Nissan Sentra was going to pick up the group. The report does not say if anyone found that car.

The trooper arrested Pena Hernandez for smuggling of persons for money. He was booked into the Starr County Jail. The trooper wrote that the arrest went "without incident." That means there was no fight or trouble.

Many questions are still open. The copy of the affidavit does not show a bond. It does not show a court date or a case number. It does not give his age or where he is from.

It also does not say what happened to the four people in the group. It only says Border Patrol agents caught them before the trooper got there.

The story in this report is the trooper's side. It is a claim, not a finding by a judge or jury. Pena Hernandez has not had his day in court.

Everyone is presumed innocent until proved otherwise.