California IN BRIEF : SAN DIEGO : Alien-Smuggling Indictments Filed

A federal grand jury indicted a Carlsbad motel operator, five Los Angeles men and a Mexican national on charges of running an alien-smuggling ring that whisked about 600 people per month to Santa Ana and Los Angeles. The manager of the Travel Inn Motel, Bharat Thakkar, 28, of Carlsbad was charged with conspiring to smuggle aliens and two counts of harboring aliens, federal prosecutors said. The six others, all of whom are in custody, were indicted on charges that ranged from conspiracy to transporting aliens, Assistant U.S. Atty. George C. Aguilar said. The immigrants were charged $250 to $300 to go to drop houses in Santa Ana and Los Angeles, he said.