Texas authorities have arrested a Mississippi woman and detained an Afghan national classified as a “special interest alien” during a human smuggling bust in Del Rio.
Department of Public Safety troopers stopped a silver Toyota RAV4 on Aguirre Street around 6:30 a.m. on August 27. The driver, Shakira Dominque Jordan, 34, of Jackson, Mississippi, was transporting four illegal aliens.
Border Patrol agents identified one passenger as a special interest alien from Afghanistan. The designation applies to individuals from countries linked to terrorism or national security threats. Their countries of origin require additional security screening and investigation.
The three other passengers hailed from Cuba and El Salvador. All four were referred to Border Patrol custody.
Jordan faces four counts of smuggling persons. She was booked into the Val Verde County Jail following her arrest.
The stop occurred during Operation Lone Star, Texas’s border security initiative. Video footage from the traffic stop shows the arrest unfolding on a Del Rio street corner.
The presence of Afghan nationals raises questions about the reach of the smuggling networks. Human traffickers increasingly transport individuals from distant countries through established routes into Texas.