A survivor of the fatal December accident involving a van full of illegal aliens will spend more than three years in prison for his role in the immigrant smuggling operation.
David Jose-Gonzalez was sentenced to 41 months behind bars Wednesday. He pleaded guilty in February to one count of transporting illegal aliens.
U.S. District Judge Ted Stewart enhanced Jose-Gonzalez's sentence after finding that he was partly responsible for creating a dangerous situation inside the van. The middle seat had been removed, and many of the 14 passengers were seated on the floor at the time of the accident.
Jose-Gonzalez's brother, Severo, was driving the van when it sideswiped a semitrailer truck on U.S. 89 near Kanab and flipped over. Severo Jose-Gonzalez and three others died at the scene.
David Jose-Gonzalez told an INS special agent following the fatal accident that he knew his brother had recruited 12 people from his home of Oaxaca, Mexico, to be smuggled into the United States.