Luis Enrique Linero Pinto, also known as “El Calvo,” pleaded guilty in federal court in El Paso, Texas, on Sept. 14, 2026, to conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and placing lives in jeopardy. The 41-year-old Colombian national faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, but a sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the indictment and court documents, Linero Pinto participated in a conspiracy to unlawfully smuggle aliens through Central America and Mexico to the United States. He advised migrants how to reach San Andres Island, Colombia, personally received them there, arranged accommodation and brought them to boats traveling to Nicaragua as part of their planned illegal entry into the United States.
Linero Pinto also bribed members of the Colombian Navy to obtain real-time intelligence on the positions of Navy patrol vessels between San Andres Island and Nicaragua, enabling the boats to avoid detection, the Justice Department said. On Oct. 21, 2023, a boat carrying approximately 40 aliens and two boat captains disappeared after leaving the island for Nicaragua. Linero Pinto admitted his role in smuggling the people aboard that vessel.
Federal authorities charged Linero Pinto in October 2024 with conspiring to encourage and induce aliens to come to, enter and reside in the United States. Colombian authorities arrested him in December 2024 at the U.S. government’s request. Following coordination between U.S. and Colombian law enforcement, he was extradited and made his initial appearance in federal court in El Paso in December 2025. A federal district judge will determine his sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Homeland Security Investigations led the investigation with assistance from its McAllen, El Paso and Cartagena field offices, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, multiple Justice Department offices and Colombian authorities. Trial Attorneys Danielle Hickman and Daria Andryushchenko and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jose Luis Acosta are prosecuting the case.
Joint Task Force Alpha coordinated the investigation and indictment. The Justice Department describes the task force as its lead effort against high-impact human smuggling and trafficking by cartels and transnational criminal organizations and says its work has produced more than 483 domestic and international arrests, more than 436 U.S. convictions and more than 371 significant jail sentences. The prosecution is also part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Justice Department initiative focused on illegal immigration, cartels, transnational criminal organizations and violent crime.