Daniel Zavala Ramos, known as Dany ZR, admitted before U.S. authorities his participation in a human trafficking network that led to the overturning of a trailer and the death of more than 50 migrants in Chiapas on December 9, 2021.
The case became one of the most serious episodes associated with human trafficking in the country, involving a network that operated from Guatemala, crossed Mexico, and aimed to bring migrants into the United States.
It is worth recalling that in 2023, Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) issued a recommendation pointing out the omission by the National Migration Institute for failing to inspect the trailer at a highway checkpoint before the accident.
On April 7, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice reported that Zavala Ramos, 42, pleaded guilty to conspiring to illegally bring migrants into the country. The charges stated that he endangered the lives of those trafficked, caused serious injuries, and led to the deaths of dozens of them.
Dany ZR was arrested in Guatemala on August 7, 2025, and extradited to the United States on October 23 of the same year. Investigations established that, in addition to adults, the network transported unaccompanied minors under conditions that proved fatal.
