Case: 17-40525 Document: 00514656314 Page: 1 Date Filed: 09/25/2018 IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit No. 17-40525 FILED September 25, 2018 Lyle W. Cayce UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Clerk Plaintiff-Appellee v. JESUS ALVAREZ, Defendant-Appellant Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas USDC No. 2:16-CR-538-1 Before GRAVES and COSTA, Circuit Judges, and BENNETT, District Judge.* PER CURIAM: ** Customs and Border Patrol agents at an immigration checkpoint discovered methamphetamine carried by defendant Jesus Alvarez. The district court denied Alvarez’s motion to suppress, and he was convicted of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. This appeal followed. We AFFIRM. * District Judge for the Southern District of Texas, sitting by designation. **Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4. Case: 17-40525 Document: 00514656314 Page: 2 Date Filed: 09/25/2018 No. 17-40525 I. On May 26, 2016, a passenger bus arrived at the Sarita immigration checkpoint in south Texas. Customs and Border Protection agents Brian Carter (“Agent Carter”) and Joel Carrillo (“Agent Carrillo”) boarded the bus, announced they were performing an immigration inspection, and requested that the passengers get their documents ready. Jesus Alvarez (“Alvarez”) and his brother Jaime Alvarez (“Jaime”) were passengers on the bus. Agent Carter initially began the immigration inspection with Jaime who was seated in the back of the bus on the aisle seat next to Alvarez. Agent Carter asked Jaime if he was a United States citizen. Jaime replied that he was and presented a United States passport card. The passport card was in a deteriorated condition—lamination was coming off and the photo was unrecognizable. Agent Carter then asked Jaime for additional documents. Jaime provided a birth certificate and a Social Security card. While Jaime was presenting the additional documents, Agent Carter asked Jaime questions about his travel, specifically where he was going and where he lived. Jaime replied that he lived in Brownsville, Texas, and was traveling to Houston to visit his aunt. Agent Carter also requested to see Jaime’s bus tickets. Though Agent Carter asked Jaime for the tickets, it was Alvarez who retrieved the tickets from a bag on the floor and presented them to Agent Carter. While Alvarez was producing the bus tickets, Agent Carter inquired whether they had any luggage. Jaime responded that they did not have any luggage and that their “aunt was going to buy them clothes when they got to Houston.” Alvarez stated the same. When Agent Cater inspected the additional documents presented by Jaime, he noticed that the Social Security card was deteriorated and unsigned. 2 Case: 17-40525 Document: 00514656314 Page: 3 Date Filed: 09/25/2018 No. 17-40525 The unsigned Social Security card combined with the condition of the passport card raised Agent Carter’s suspicion concerning the authenticity of the documents. Agent Carter then asked Jaime if ...
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