EL PASO, Texas — A Texas man was arrested Feb. 16 in El Paso on legal prices associated to his alleged bribery of a Homeland Safety Investigations (HSI) particular agent.
Pedro Thiessen, 70, of Seminole, did not declare greater than $10,000 when getting into america on the Ysleta Port of Entry in October 2022, in keeping with a legal grievance towards him.
Thiessen filed a petition to recuperate the funds, and in January 2023, an HSI particular agent interviewed him. An affidavit connected to the grievance alleges that Thiessen provided to pay the agent an unknown amount of cash if the agent assisted with the restoration. The agent reported the provide to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Workplace of Skilled Accountability.
The affidavit alleges that Thiessen once more proposed a financial provide to the agent throughout a Feb. 6 cellphone name. On Feb. 15, the agent organized a gathering with Thiessen for the next day. Based on courtroom paperwork, Thiessen introduced the agent with $1,000 at that assembly and was instantly arrested.
Thiessen is charged with bribery of public officers. If convicted, he faces a most penalty of 15 years in jail. A federal district courtroom choose will decide his sentence after contemplating the U.S. Sentencing Pointers and different statutory components.
HSI and the Workplace of Skilled Accountability are investigating the case, which Assistant U.S. Legal professional Michael Osterberg is prosecuting.
A legal grievance is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed harmless till confirmed responsible past an affordable doubt in a courtroom of regulation.
HSI is the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Division of Homeland Safety (DHS), liable for investigating transnational crime and threats, particularly these legal organizations that exploit the worldwide infrastructure by which worldwide commerce, journey, and finance transfer. HSI’s workforce of greater than 8,700 staff consists of greater than 6,000 particular brokers assigned to 237 cities all through america, and 93 abroad areas in 56 international locations. HSI’s worldwide presence represents DHS’s largest investigative regulation enforcement presence overseas and one of many largest worldwide footprints in U.S. regulation enforcement.
