Mission man sentenced to 20 years in connection with fatal human smuggling crash
A Mission man was sentenced to 20 years in jail after pleading guilty to two counts of murder and one count of evading arrest following a fatal 2021 human smuggling crash, court records show.
Mario Oscar Maldona was arrested in November 2021 after a vehicle occupied by 12 people rolled over following a police chase north of La Joya, killing two people.
READ MORE: Mission man charged in connection with deadly crash north of La Joya
Maldonado was initially indicted on a total of 26 counts of human smuggling, murder and evading arrest in connection with the crash.
Court records show Maldonado had his human smuggling charges dismissed after pleading guilty to the murder charges and one count of evading arrest.
Maldonado was sentenced to 20 years in jail on each of the murder charges, and 10 years for the evading arrest charge. Hidalgo County Assistant District Attorney Leigh Ann Tognetti said the sentences will run concurrently.