Six men and three women have been charged with for their roles in a San Juan kidnapping ring reportedly linked to Gulf Cartel.
All are accused of holding a man and woman captive for three weeks.
All seven are claiming they were hired by members of the Gulf Cartel to carry out these kidnappings.
They're now facing some serious charges and time behind bars.
The suspects were identified:
• Roxanna Leal
• Beatriz Segoviano
• Sandra Rodriguez
• Osiel Castillo
• Juan Aguilar
• Luis Aguilar
• Petro Perez
All seven stood before a San Juan municipal judge early this afternoon. All are facing two counts of aggravated kidnapping.
San Juan police Action 4 News that the group helped smuggle a man and pregnant woman into the United States about three weeks ago.
Investigators said the group was supposed to make sure the couple made it safely to family members living in the United States.
Instead, the alleged human smugglers kept them, moving the couple to several homes in the Rio Grande Valley where they called their family members demanding more money.
Police told Action 4 News that the pregnant victim's mother reached out to them fearful for her daughter's safety.
After a long investigation, police said they were finally able to pinpoint the exact location of the suspects at a home on West Ebony Street in McAllen.
Police said suspect Roxanna Leal, who is pregnant, is the one who actually picked up both victims from the river and cared for them during this ordeal.
All seven suspect were charged with two counts of aggravated kidnapping and each given a $500,000 dollars in bonds.
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