FAYETTE CO. SHERIFF’S OFFICE STOPS HUMAN SMUGGLING ATTEMPT AFTER FINDING HAY BALES HIDING UNDOCUMENTED INDIVIDUALS

  

The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office made several arrests today (Tuesday) in connection to a human smuggling attempt involving the usage of hay bales.

According to the sheriff’s office, Drug Interdiction Sergeant Randy Thumann stopped a white Ford F-250 traveling eastbound along I-10 at the 658 mile marker, near Flatonia, shortly after 12:45 p.m. 

The truck was pulling a gooseneck hay trailer loaded with round bales that, upon closer inspection, were determined to have been “meticulously altered and hollowed out to create concealed compartments.”  Deputies checked the compartments and found multiple people hidden in “dangerously confined spaces”, behind metal frameworks and layers of hay.

The sheriff’s office called this method of concealment “not only deceptive but incredibly dangerous to human life.” 

The driver of the vehicle was identified as 44-year-old Delbert Flanders of Kansas, who was taken to the hospital for treatment of “unknown medical issues.”  22-year-old Adanaylo Lambert and 25-year-old Lency Delgado Fernandez, who are both from Houston and were described by the sheriff’s office as the “coordinators of the operation”, were taken into custody and are facing federal and state charges related to human smuggling. 

The 12 undocumented individuals were turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the case in coordination with federal authorities.  The sheriff’s office was assisted during the traffic stop by DPS, Flatonia police and Fayette County EMS.