DA: 2 illegal immigrants plead guilty to money laundering in Decatur County

DECATUR COUNTY, Tenn. — Two men pleaded guilty Friday morning to money laundering charges in Decatur County Circuit Court.

Juan Silvas Trevizo, 69, of Aqua Pireta, Mexico, and Guadelupe Judith Silvas-Perez, 20, of Chihuahua, Mexico, pleaded guilty to money laundering charges stemming from their April 11 arrests, according to a release from the office of District Attorney General Matt Stowe.

“We are satisfied with the plea arrangements in this case,” Stowe said in the release. “As these individuals were illegal aliens, this agreement allows for their release to INS (U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service) for deportation immediately.”

Judge Creed McGinley accepted their plea and sentenced them to eight years with all time suspended to time served, according to the release. The agreement also required forfeiture of the contraband.

The release does not specify the contraband that led to the arrests.

Trevizo and Silvas-Perez were arrested April 11 on Interstate 40 in Decatur County and have since been held in the Decatur County Detention Center.

The men were arrested by agents with the Drug Task Force of the 24th Judicial District, a division of the Office of the District Attorney General.