El Paso Standard

Greiby Melissa Barcelo-Velasquez has been sentenced to 30 months in prison by a U.S. court for her involvement in the smuggling operation of more than 100 Colombians into the United States. The investigation was a collaborative effort conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It began in late 2023 when several Colombian nationals identified Barcelo-Velasquez, aged 39, as their smuggling organizer.

Francisco B. Burrola, ICE Homeland Security Investigations Arizona Special Agent in Charge, remarked on the case stating, "The defendant and her associates blatantly disregarded the safety and well-being of others by prioritizing personal profit over human lives." He emphasized the importance of collaboration with law enforcement partners to combat these dangerous transnational criminal networks.

Barcelo-Velasquez operated Baul Travel SAS, a travel agency in Colombia. Court documents revealed that she allegedly charged victims for travel to Mexico, disguising the trips as vacations and requiring additional bribes at Mexican airports in U.S. currency. Upon arrival in Mexico, the Colombian nationals were moved to stash houses near the border and were then illegally transported into the United States by armed gunmen.

The prosecution, under Joint Task Force Alpha, is part of a broader initiative intended to dismantle cartels and transnational criminal organizations. This task force, boosted by the Department of Justice, aims to eliminate human smuggling and trafficking networks affecting public safety and border security across regions including Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and Colombia. The efforts of JTFA have, so far, led to over 355 arrests worldwide, with more than 320 convictions in the United States, significant jail terms for over 265 individuals, and the seizure of assets.

The prosecution was led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stuart Zander and Adriana Genco from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona in Phoenix.