ARRESTS MADE IN CHILD TRAFFICKING OPERATION LINKED TO CARTEL AT SMITHVILLE RESTAURANT
According to a report by WJLE, in Smithville, Tennessee, authorities arrested several individuals on December 17, 2025, following a three-month joint investigation by the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department, Smithville Police Department, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Department of Homeland Security into a human smuggling and child labor trafficking operation at Chabelita’s Restaurant and Market.
The probe began on September 8, 2025, when a female minor escaped and reported to police that she and three other minor children—three males and one female—had been smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border by coyotes linked to a Mexican drug cartel, transported to Arizona, and then brought to Tennessee, where they were forced to work at the business to repay smuggling debts and housing costs. The girl was housed with adults on Bright Hill Road, while the three boys lived unsupervised on West Broad Street; all four were placed in the custody of the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services. Search warrants executed in September yielded firearms and evidence.
Among those charged were 18-year-old Joshua Hernandez-Morales with trafficking for forced labor (allegedly controlling the girl through threats and verbal abuse), facing a $75,000 bond, and 52-year-old Marcelino Diaz-Decena with unlawful possession of a weapon as a prohibited person, facing a $25,000 bond; both are scheduled for court on January 8, 2026. ICE and DHS also detained two undocumented immigrants during the operation, with Sheriff Patrick Ray and Police Chief Mark Collins indicating more arrests are expected.
