What human cargo?
Truck driver in Texas tragedy denies knowing immigrants were in stifling trailer.
SAN ANTONIO ( Texas): The truck driver accused of smuggling at least 100 illegal immigrants inside a sweltering tractor-trailer, 10 of whom died, has said he was unaware of the human cargo he was hauling until he took a rest stop in Texas, court papers showed.
James Bradley Jr, 60, told investigators he was caught by surprise when he opened the trailer doors outside a Walmart store in San Antonio, only to be knocked down by a group of “Spanish” people pouring out of the rig, according to the criminal complaint filed in the case.
But the narrative attributed to Bradley, who could face the death penalty if convicted, was at odds with authorities’ accounts of a small fleet of SUVs waiting in the Walmart lot to carry away some of the immigrants who clamoured out of the truck.
Daytime temperatures in the hours before the truck arrived had topped 37.8°C.
Bradley made a brief appearance in federal court on Monday in San Antonio, where he was charged with one count of transporting illegal immigrants – a felony for which he could face capital punishment if convicted because the crime resulted in deaths.
San Antonio Police Chief William McManus also said video footage showed several vehicles coming to pick up people who were inside the truck, though Bradley, according to court documents unsealed on Monday, denied seeing any such vehicles.
Bradley told investigators he did not know anyone was inside the truck until he parked near the store to use the bathroom and heard banging and shaking coming from the back, according to the criminal complaint.
According to the complaint, Bradley told investigators he was hauling the trailer from Iowa to Brownsville, Texas, to deliver it to its new owner. He said he had stopped in Laredo to get the vehicle washed before heading on to San Antonio.
Authorities gave Bradley’s residence as Clearwater, Florida.
But Darnisha Rose, who lives in Louisville, Kentucky, and identified herself as his fiancee, said Bradley was a 47-year trucking veteran who made his home in his rig.
Rose described Bradley as a kind, family man whom she met two years ago when he was hospitalised in Louisville for a toe amputation and she was the housekeeper for his room.
She said he recently had his right leg amputated.
Public defender Alfredo Villarreal, one of two lawyers representing Bradley, did not respond to a request for comment. — Reuters