MCALLEN – A Mission man will spend more than a decade behind bars for his role in a kidnapping scheme involving people in the country illegally.

Juan Perez-Alcoser, 21, pleaded guilty to a conspiracy to commit hostage-taking.

Federal prosecutors said he was part of a home invasion crew that specialized in targeting human smuggling stash houses.

The investigation revealed that a group of immigrants in the country illegally were being held at a stash house in the Rio Grande Valley.

On May 2, 2016, a home invasion crew broke into a stash house, held the caretaker at gunpoint and demanded the people leave with them.

The immigrants were taken to another location where their belongings were taken away.

Another suspect held the immigrants at gunpoint and demanded they give him the names and phone numbers of their family members, who he then called to demand $2,000 for their release.

The families paid but instead of releasing the immigrants, they were sold to other hostage-takers who called the families for even more ransom money.

Perez watched over the immigrants and held them at gunpoint.

Eventually, the immigrants snuck away and turned themselves in to Border Patrol agents.

Perez was sentenced to more than 13 years in federal prison.

Five other suspects were sentenced to decades in prison for being part of the home invasion crews.