SAN DIEGO (AP) - A man charged with heading a ring that smuggled thousands of Romanians into the United States has pleaded not guilty to federal charges.
Luigi Cristinel Popescu, 52, entered pleas Monday in federal court in San Diego to charges of conspiracy, bringing in illegal aliens for financial gain and aiding and abetting, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
He was ordered held without bail.
Popescu was arrested on Friday in the Romanian capital of Bucharest on a U.S. warrant and extradited over the weekend. He is from the village of Cernatesti, northeast of the capital.
Prosecutors said Popescu coordinated a network of guides, drivers and stash houses to bring Romanians into the U.S. from both the northern and southern borders, including a route from Mexico to California.
The immigrants were charged $10,000 to $25,000, authorities said.
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