WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Bangladeshi national extradited from Brazil has pleaded guilty to his role in a conspiracy that smuggled numerous people through South America, Central America and Mexico into the United States, federal officials announced.
Read the U.S. Department of Justice release: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/prolific-human-smuggler-extradited-brazil-pleads-guilty-smuggling-aliens-united-states
The plea was announced on November 9, 2026, by Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department's Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Aaron Reitz for the Southern District of Texas.
Saiful Islam, 39, a Bangladeshi national, pleaded guilty, according to the release.
Islam was extradited from Brazil to the United States in April 2026, officials reported.
Dangerous Boats, The Darien Gap, And Borrowed Documents
According to court documents, Islam participated in a wide-ranging alien smuggling organization and assisted other smugglers by facilitating the travel of people from and through Brazil, South America, Central America and Mexico so that they could illegally enter the United States.
Some people were transported along the Colombian coast in dangerous boats by intoxicated pilots, according to the release.
Some trekked through the Darien Gap, officials reported.
Some were given other individuals' documentation to conceal their identities, according to the release.
The people were brought to the southern border and were instructed to cross into the United States by wading across the Rio Grande River or by jumping a border fence, officials reported.
Some paid Islam thousands of dollars to be smuggled into the United States, according to the release.
Three Counts, A Forfeiture, And A February Sentencing
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Islam pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to bring an alien to the United States and two counts of bringing an alien to the United States, all for the purpose of commercial advantage and private financial gain, according to the release.
Islam agreed to forfeit money he collected from the people he smuggled, officials reported.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on February 17, 2027, and faces a mandatory minimum of three years in prison, according to the release.
A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, officials reported.
An HSI Investigation, International Partners, And Joint Task Force Alpha
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Phoenix investigated the case with assistance from HSI Laredo, HSI Brasilia, HSI Bogota, the HSI Human Smuggling Unit in Washington, D.C., U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Counter Network Division, the Brazil Department of Federal Police, the Colombia National Police, the U.S. Marshals Service and INTERPOL, according to the release.
Trial Attorney Spencer M. Perry of the Criminal Division's Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leslie Cortez for the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case, officials reported.
The Justice Department's Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in securing Islam's arrest and extradition from Brazil, according to the release.
The case was supported and prosecuted by Joint Task Force Alpha, the Justice Department's lead effort in combating human smuggling and trafficking committed by cartels and transnational criminal organizations throughout the Americas, officials reported.
To date, Joint Task Force Alpha's work has resulted in more than 486 domestic and international arrests, more than 447 U.S. convictions, and more than 374 significant jail sentences and forfeitures of substantial assets, according to the release.
What happens next is Islam's sentencing on February 17, 2027. Anyone with information about human smuggling activity is asked to contact Homeland Security Investigations or local law enforcement.
Sources
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, "Prolific Human Smuggler Extradited from Brazil Pleads Guilty to Smuggling Aliens into the United States," November 9, 2026: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/prolific-human-smuggler-extradited-brazil-pleads-guilty-smuggling-aliens-united-states
Transparency notes
Published: Nov 9, 2026. No major post-publication update has been logged.
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