TAMPA, Florida (CMC) – A 31-year-old Cuban man has pleaded guilty to migrant smuggling, asylum fraud and money laundering charges in connection with an operation that prosecutors in the United States (US) say helped thousands of Cuban nationals and other migrants enter the US illegally.

The US Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said Yuniel Lima-Santos, a Tampa resident, conspired with others to operate a smuggling organisation that encouraged or assisted thousands of Cubans to enter the United States through the southern border and fraudulently use the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) and visa waivers.

According to court documents, the organisation advertised smuggling and fraudulent visa services on several social media platforms, targeting Cubans and other migrants seeking to enter the United States and obtain legal immigration status.

Prosecutors said the services included helping Cubans falsely claim European citizenship so they could enter the US using European tourist visa waivers or ESTA.
The organisation allegedly filed hundreds of fraudulent ESTA applications with US Customs and Border Protection using false addresses and fabricated documents.

Cubans are not eligible for the ESTA programme, and prosecutors said the defendants falsely claimed that applicants had not been in Cuba since 2011, despite knowing they were in Cuba when the applications were submitted.

The US Attorney’s Office said Lima-Santos also helped transport migrants from their countries of origin, including Cuba, into and throughout the United States by purchasing international and domestic airline tickets.

Prosecutors said Lima-Santos and co-defendant Frandy Aragon Diaz smuggled five migrants into the United States. Lima-Santos also admitted helping Aragon Diaz bring Cuban women illegally into the country, where they worked in strip clubs to repay their smuggling debts.

Authorities said the organisation charged between US$1,500 and US$40,000 for its services and, in some cases, chartered private aircraft to transport groups of migrants.

As part of the money laundering operation, prosecutors said Lima-Santos incorporated a shell company in Florida that had no employees, payroll or reported income. The company was allegedly used to move proceeds from the smuggling operation and conceal the source of the funds.

Between 2021 and 2024, Lima-Santos allegedly transferred more than US$600,000 internationally from the United States to purchase airline tickets used to facilitate illegal entry into the country.

He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit migrant smuggling for financial gain, five counts of migrant smuggling for financial gain, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and two money laundering conspiracy charges.

Lima-Santos faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

The US Attorney’s Office said 12 people were charged in a superseding indictment in connection with the conspiracy.

Six other defendants – Liannys Yaiselys Vega-Perez, Miguel Alejandro Martinez Vasconcelos, Layra Libertad Treto Santos, Emanuel Martinez Gonzalez, Walbis Pozo-Dutel and Luis Emmanuel Escalona-Marrero – have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.

Another defendant, Erik Ventura-Castro, pleaded guilty in May and was sentenced in July to 30 months in prison.

Lazaro Alain Cabrera-Rodriguez and Gisleivy Peralta Consuegra are awaiting trial, which is scheduled to begin on September 21.