On February 1, Smith County sheriff’s deputies pulled over Hector Hernandez Javier Villarreal because the vehicle he was driving did not display a front license plate. Deputies asked for and received permission to search the car and discovered $67,000 in cash as well as a shotgun.
Villarreal and his wife, Maria Teresita Botello, both Mexican nationals were taken into custody and as routine, deputies checked the serial number on the shotgun. That’s when things got interesting.
Smith County Sheriff J.B. Smith told Fox News: “When we ran the check on the shotgun, then all of a sudden everyone in federal government became interested -- ATF, FBI, Homeland Security, Immigration [and Customs Enforcement] all showed up.”
As it turned out, Villarreal was the former secretary executive of the Tax Administration Service of Coahulia, Mexico, and had been accused of embezzling millions from the government of Mexico.
Villarreal had been arrested back home in November, but skipped town after posting bail and getting his hands on a U.S. visa.
Sheriff Smith said: “We placed them in jail on money-laundering charges, seized the vehicle and the money, ICE came and picked them up from our jail and took them to Dallas and that's the last we've seen or heard of them.”
On February 6, Villarreal and Botello both posted bond, and were placed into the custody of on Feb. 6 were released into the custody of Homeland Security and taken to a Dallas detention center.
U.S. State Department officials then got involved and demanded the pair be released.
However, the very next day, the State Department reversed that order, but it was too late. Villarreal and Botello were already gone.
One Congressman is now calling for a Congressional hearing into the matter.
Rep. Louie Gohmert told Fox News: “What are the federal officials thinking? The State Department is screwing up by ordering locals to release these fugitives. I don't know if it's corruption or incompetence, but it's one or the other and in my experience with federal government, I'm guessing it's incompetence.”
The EB-5 visa on which Villareal entered the U.S. is granted to foreign nationals who have invested at least $500,000 in this country, according to Gohmert.
At this time, Villarreal remains at-large.
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