(NewsNation) — Branden Broadhead, 23, says he joined the military to help pay for school after struggling with his studies during COVID.
“I was like, you know, I’ve always heard that the military (or) the Army will pay for your tuition, so I enlisted,” Broadhead said.
He said he had good intentions when he took an oath to protect and serve, inspired, in part, by his grandma.
“She always told me growing up (to) join,” he said.
But then a friend connected him with a low-level cartel member, who promised him $5,000 in cash if he smuggled migrants who had crossed the southern border into Texas. He says his mom was sick and unable to work, so he said yes.
Broadhead headed to Eagle Pass from Austin, where he picked up two migrants from Mexico — a woman and a man who said they were cousins. He made it to rural Kinney County but was surprised by a pop-up tactical Border Patrol checkpoint.
He turned around, which alerted law enforcement.
“I’m realizing I had a great life,” Broadhead said. “Huge mistake.”
Kinney County Sheriff Brad Coe said it’s a situation anybody might be lured toward.
“I mean, the talk of big money, plus they’re away from home, plus the government knows what their bills are,” Coe said. “They’re being lured into this because of the promise of big money.”
It’s a similar story to that of the Texas National Guard member arrested at the same checkpoint.
Savion Johnson tried to outrun law enforcement before his vehicle was spiked and stopped, and he was pulled from the vehicle and arrested.
Officials say cartels recruiting military members to help smuggle migrants is an alarming trend that likely won’t stop anytime soon.
“I think it’s more widespread than anybody wants to believe,” Coe said. “I mean, we’ve had law enforcement getting involved with biker gangs on the side. They end up getting ratted out, and now we’ve got the military involved in some of this stuff. It’s just a matter of time before we get somebody else.”
Coe says authorities will follow up with him to see if he will provide information on the coordinators and the bigger fish in the whole scheme.