TUCSON, Ariz. – Efrain Pacheco-Ovalles, 30, of Culiacan, Sonora, Mexico, was sentenced on Jan. 29, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Angela M. Martinez to 21 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Pacheco-Ovalles pleaded guilty to assault of a federal officer and conspiracy to transport illegal aliens for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office will not tolerate assaults on federal agents nor the criminal networks that exploit our southern border,” said U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine. “In Tucson and across Arizona, law enforcement officers put their lives on the line to stop these networks from smuggling people and drugs into our country.
We will protect our agents, secure the border, and hold accountable those who profit from lawlessness.”In January and February of 2025, the defendant was working as a scout for a transnational criminal organization (TCO). Scouts are trusted TCO members who are integral to successfully moving aliens and controlled substances without being interdicted by law enforcement. TCOs have long used remote areas of the Tohono O’odham Indian Nation to smuggle narcotics and aliens from Mexico into the United States. Scouts act as the “eyes and ears” of TCOs.
Scouts position themselves on mountain tops in smuggling corridors so that they have views of roads and smuggling routes. They use binoculars to look for law enforcement, and radios and cellphones to communicate with other members of the conspiracy to ensure coconspirators and illegal aliens escape apprehension by law enforcement. The defendant in this case admitted he was expected to scout for three months and was going to be paid $40 per alien that successfully arrived in the Phoenix area.On Feb. 4, 2025, U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) agents conducted an operation to disrupt the scout site on Nine Mile Mountain in a remote area of the Tohono O’odham Indian Nation.
When agents located the defendant trying to hide under a tree, he fled down the mountain. An agent pursued the defendant. The agent repeatedly identified himself as a USBP agent in English and Spanish. The air unit also maintained visual.
The agent chased the defendant downhill for about 1.5 miles. The defendant was taking pictures and videos of the agents while he ran. Agents also saw the defendant throw his binoculars and backpack. When one agent got close enough to try to apprehend him, the defendant intentionally elbowed the agent in the face, resulting in a black eye.This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).The U.S. Border Patrol, Tucson Sector, investigated the case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.CASE NUMBER: 4:25-CR-01353-AMMRELEASE NUMBER: 2026-017_ Pacheco-Ovalles# # #For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/Follow the U.S.
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