HOUSTON – The FBI has announced an increased reward for international human trafficking fugitive Alfonso Diaz-Juarez, aka Poncho, aka El Greñas.
Diaz-Juarez is one of 16 defendants charged in 2013 for operating an international sex trafficking organization which forced women and minors into prostitution. A Clear Channel Outdoor digital billboard campaign launched Wednesday across the Houston area, touting up to a $50,000 reward for information leading to the location and arrest of Diaz-Juarez.
"Mr. Diaz-Juarez needs to be brought to justice," said Perrye K. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the Houston Field Office of the FBI. "The longer he eludes justice, the greater the chance there will be more victims. The FBI will continue to work alongside our local, state, and other federal partners, until Diaz-Juarez is captured."
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The case is the result of one of the largest Houston area sex-trafficking investigations conducted by members of the Human Trafficking Rescue Alliance (HTRA), which includes the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, Harris County Sheriff’s Office, Internal Revenue Service, Texas Alcoholic and Beverage Commission, Department of State, Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Houston Police Department.
The three-year investigation revealed the conspiracy operated beginning in the summer of 1999 across the Houston area and beyond. Undocumented women and girls were compelled into performing commercial sex acts inside various cantinas through the use of force, violence, fraud, and coercion, including the use of locked rooms to maintain control over the young women and girls. All of the victims are now being assisted by non-governmental organizations.
It was part of the conspiracy that the defendants relied on "padrotes" or pimps to supply women and girls for their brothels. The defendants profited from the entrance fees, drink sales and by charging for providing a room for sex acts, as well as condoms. The amount of money charged for a commercial sex act varied from $65 for 15 minutes up to $500 per hour for minors.
Diaz-Juarez is charged for his role as a "padrote" in the conspiracy. He is a 47-year-old Mexican citizen. Investigators believe he may be in Houston or Mexico, or traveling between Texas and Mexico.
If you have information about Diaz-Juarez, call the FBI Houston Field Office or the nearest embassy. Tips may also be submitted to the FBI online.