Ex-State Trooper From Franklin Pleads Guilty To Smuggling Woman

NASHVILLE, TN — A former Tennessee Highway Patrol sergeant faces five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to smuggling a 22-year-old Honduran woman into the United States.

Ronald Edward Strickland, 70, of Franklin, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court Monday to transporting an illegal alien. Strickland was arrested in August 2016. (For more updates on this story and free news alerts for your neighborhood, sign up for your local Middle Tennessee Patch morning newsletter.)

In early 2016, Strickland devised a scheme to smuggle the woman into the United States. He texted her on January 7, 2016, about joining him in the U.S. and engaging in a sexual relationship. Strickland then began to text another individual in Honduras and others in furtherance of his plan. He maintained contact with the individuals, receiving regular updates on the woman's progress until he was told she had arrived in Houston, Texas.

In July 2016, Strickland drove to Houston, met the woman and drove her to his Franklin home.

Acting on a tip, on July 22, 2016, Homeland Security agents went to his home and found the woman. The investigation revealed Strickland paid a so-called coyote $8,000 to bring her from Honduras to Houston. Strickland maintained an apartment in that country and regularly traveled there.

Strickland is set to be sentenced in October.

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