Tucson woman sentenced for role in human trafficking case

PHOENIX — A Tucson woman was sentenced to prison for her role in a human trafficking case involving migrants, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona announced on Friday.

Sharnesia Latrice Cooley, 31, was found guilty at her trial on Nov. 1, 2024 for “conspiracy to transport illegal aliens for profit and transporting illegal aliens for profit,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Cooley was sentenced to six years.

Why were the Tucson woman sentenced to six years in prison?

Authorities said on Feb. 2, 2024, a U.S. border patrol camera operator near Naco found four migrants approaching a 2011 Volkswagen Routan while a Border Patrol agent saw them get into the vehicle.

After stopping the vehicle, Border Patrol found only Cooley, her two-year-old son and Mariana Garcia-Tapia inside the vehicle.

Upon a search, the migrants were discovered with injuries along the road just east of the San Pedro Bridge. Authorities said their injuries were similar to someone jumping from a moving vehicle.

It was discovered that the migrants were in the U.S. illegally and one of them admitted to making arrangements to be smuggled into the U.S. in exchange for money.

The migrants were taken to the hospital due to their injuries.

Garcia-Tapia, pleaded guilty on July 10 to “conspiracy to transport illegal aliens for profit placing in jeopardy the life of any person,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. She was sentenced on Nov. 15 to six years in prison, with an additional year in prison due to violating conditions related in a separate case.

U.S. Border Patrol handled the investigation while Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alicia Renee Quezada and Caroline Allen handled the prosecution.

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