This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Updated: 1:57 PM- A man charged with causing the traffic deaths of eight undocumented immigrants last month in San Juan County pleaded not guilty today to the offense.

And federal prosecutor Michael Kennedy said the U.S. Attorney's Office does not plan to seek the death penalty in this case.

If the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., agrees and 30-year-old Rigoberto Sales-Lopez is convicted, he will face a maximum of life in prison.

Federal Magistrate Brooke Wells set a trial date of July 9. That proceeding, before U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell, is expected to take four or five days.

Sales-Lopez and two other men - Adolfo Manuel Espinoza, who also uses the name Neftali Espinoza, and Felipe Sales-Perez - were indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury on one count each of transporting illegal aliens resulting in death.

According to a charging document, Sales-Lopez has acknowledged he was driving a Chevrolet Suburban on April 16 when it rolled on U.S. Highway 191 south of Bluff, killing eight of the 14 people on board. Witnesses allege he was sexually abusing a 22-year-old female passenger when the rollover occurred.

Sales-Lopez allegedly told agents with U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) that Espinoza gave him the van in Phoenix and paid him $1,000 to drive the passengers from there to St. Louis. He also was paid $500 for gas, the charging document says.

Court records do not give details on the alleged role of Sales-Perez, who was a passenger in the van and is being held on an ICE detainer. An arrest warrant has been issued for Espinoza.

Initial court appearances for the two will be scheduled soon, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Sales-Lopez, who is from Guatemala, is being held in jail pending trial. Immigration authorities say he entered the United States illegally and have placed a detainer on him.

To date, authorities have identified only three of the fatal victims: Hermilo Velasquez, 18, Chiapas, Mexico; Maria Carrillo, 22, Guatemala; and Everinda Lopez, 27, Guatemala. The remaining five victims also are believed to have been from Guatemala.

pmanson@sltrib.com" Target="_BLANK">pmanson@sltrib.com