Shelby Woman Convicted in Multi-County Illegal Immigration Case Spanning Border to Helena

GREAT FALLS — A Shelby woman with multiple prior immigration convictions was found guilty by a federal jury Wednesday of attempting to harbor illegal aliens after she was repeatedly found transporting them in encounters spanning from Montana’s northern border to the state capital, marking the latest in a series of immigration-related convictions in Montana federal court this year.

Kristin Louise Mitchell, 41, was convicted of one count of attempted harboring of illegal aliens following a two-day trial. Mitchell has a history with law enforcement. According to Cowboy State Daily, she was previously convicted of human smuggling and later escaped from federal custody. She faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided over the trial and will determine sentencing after considering federal guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 5, 2025. Mitchell remains released on conditions pending further proceedings.

“Mitchell attempted to harbor illegal aliens. Those who are illegally in the United States need to leave,” U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said. “”Those who try to hide them, especially aliens like Porfirio Alexander Suarez, who allegedly possessed a firearm in November 2023 when he was encountered by law enforcement in Texas, are committing a crime and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” The prosecutor’s specific reference to Suarez’s alleged firearm possession underscores the potential danger posed by the individuals Mitchell was transporting.”

Complex Investigation Spanning Counties

The case began Feb. 21, 2025, when a Montana Highway Patrol officer conducted a traffic stop in Gallatin County on a vehicle displaying fictitious plates. The officer cited the driver, Suarez, for the license plate violation and released the vehicle.

Four days later, a Border Patrol agent at the Sweetgrass Station ran a registration check on a temporary Montana vehicle tag in Shelby that matched the same vehicle from the February traffic stop.

On March 4, 2025, Border Patrol agents observed Mitchell driving the same vehicle with two male occupants, including Suarez. Officers from the Toole County Sheriff’s Office also spotted the vehicle and conducted a traffic stop when it failed to stop at an intersection.

Mitchell, who was driving, told deputies the two men with her were political asylum seekers who did not speak English. The deputies contacted Border Patrol for assistance.

A Border Patrol agent who responded recognized Mitchell from a prior encounter at the northern border, indicating a pattern of activity in the border region. When the agent attempted to speak with the passengers in English and Spanish, Mitchell answered for them, claiming they were political asylum seekers from Venezuela. She also referred to one of the individuals as her boyfriend.

Neither man could produce documents to verify their legal status. All three occupants were detained and taken to the Sweetgrass Border Patrol Station.

Prior Immigration Violations

Records checks revealed the passengers’ identities as Venezuelan citizens with no record of legal admission to the United States. Mitchell is a U.S. citizen with multiple prior convictions for immigration offenses, according to court documents. The repeated encounters along the route between the Canadian border and Great Falls suggest a pattern of coordinated movement rather than isolated incidents.

Meanwhile, other Border Patrol officers surveilling Mitchell’s home spotted a third man outside the house who matched the description of someone encountered during the February traffic stop in Gallatin County. He was detained and admitted he had been previously removed from the United States. Border Patrol determined this individual was a Honduran citizen.

One of the Venezuelan men testified in a deposition in April that he had been working on a commercial construction site near Bozeman when his employer refused to pay him, leaving him stranded. Through Mitchell’s connection to one of the Venezuelans, they decided to drive to Shelby to stay with her.

The men stopped at a Walmart en route to Shelby and bought bottles of margaritas. They were later stopped in East Helena, where the driver was arrested for DUI. Mitchell was contacted and drove from Shelby to East Helena to bail the driver out of jail and collect the car. The three men then stayed with Mitchell at her Shelby home for several days before their arrest.

Recent Federal Immigration Enforcement

Mitchell’s conviction represents part of a broader pattern of federal immigration enforcement in Montana this year. The enforcement efforts come amid a dramatic surge in illegal border crossings in the region. According to Cowboy State Daily, Border Patrol encounters in the Spokane and Havre Sectors jumped from 11 in December 2024 to 87 in January and February 2025.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office has prosecuted numerous immigration-related cases in recent months, while federal agents have made several high-profile arrests, including:

• HSI agents in Helena arrested a Honduran national June 25 following reports of an attempted kidnapping and a vehicle ramming incident during the arrest attempt.

Recent federal sentencing cases include:

• A Mexican man sentenced July 7 to time served for possessing fraudulent immigration documents after living illegally in the United States for 27 years following deportation for drug trafficking.
• A Honduran man sentenced June 13 to 99 days in federal prison for his third illegal reentry into the United States after two prior removals.

All cases are being prosecuted under Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative aimed at combating illegal immigration and dismantling cartels and transnational criminal organizations.

The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Border Patrol, Montana Highway Patrol and Toole County Sheriff’s Office. The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case.

“I want to thank the Assistant U.S. Attorneys who prosecuted this case, the staff in our office for their assistance, and the law enforcement agents from the Toole County Sheriff’s Office, Montana Highway Patrol, and the U.S. Border Patrol for their hard work on the case,” Alme said.