A woman from Texas has admitted to using melatonin gummies to drug young girls while trafficking them into the United States, coinciding with border agents’ alerts about the smuggling of children through similar tactics along the southern border.
On Friday, 23-year-old Vanessa Valadez from Laredo admitted to collaborating with relatives to illegally transport children under five years old from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, during August and September 2023.
“La noquiamos con unas gomitas,” one of Valdez’s co-conspirators wrote in a message alongside an image of a passed out girl during one operation — which translates to “we knocked her out with some gummies.”
Valdez and her family allegedly brought at least four young girls into the country, as reported by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). They reportedly picked the girls up from a stash house across the border, drugged them, and attempted to use fake birth certificates to present them as relatives.
Following their time in Laredo, the girls were transported further into the United States and placed with unfamiliar individuals for unclear reasons.
On September 21, 2023, border agents uncovered Valdez and her accomplices during a standard inspection.
According to a statement from HSI, three of the girls smuggled into the US have not been identified, and their current locations are unknown.
Valdez was involved with several accomplices:
- Ana Laura Bryand, 47;
- Her niece Kayla Marie Bryand, 20;
- Jose Eduardo Bryand, 43;
- Nancy Guadalupe Bryand, 44; and
- 32-year-old Lizeth Esmeralda Bryand Arredondo from Mexico.
All have admitted their roles in the disturbing plot.
US border agents are raising alarms about a troubling increase in child trafficking along the border, highlighting that the extent of the issue remains largely unknown.
Border Patrol sources have reported an increase in smugglers utilizing children to impersonate family units, with instances of the same children appearing at the border multiple times accompanied by different adults each time.
Officials are concerned about the potential risks facing the children, particularly regarding child labor and sexual exploitation.
Similar to the situation with Valdez, smugglers have been apprehended for drugging children with sleep aids and employing counterfeit birth certificates to create false identities.