McALLEN, Texas - Jose Urbano Cortinas, 29, has been ordered to prison for nearly 23 years following his conviction of conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Cortinas, of Memphis...

BROWNSVILLE, Texas - Jose Luis Zuniga-Hernandez, 47, aka Wicho or XW or Commandante Wicho, has been ordered to federal prison along with his brother Armando Arizmendi Hernandez, 37, aka Commandante Mando or XW2 for conspiracy to import more than five kilograms of cocaine and more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana...

LAREDO, Texas - Seven people were sentenced this week for their roles in a drug conspiracy involving the shipment of cocaine and methamphetamine from Laredo to Dallas and Houston, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. U.S. District Court...

PHOENIX - DEA Special Agents and Tempe Police Narcotics Detectives working as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task (OCDETF) Strike Force, and in partnership with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, recently completed a 30-month investigation resulting in the dismantling and ‘take down’ of an extensive drug trafficking network...

KERRVILLE, Texas - Dr. Richard B. Debenedetto, of Kerville, TX, has been sentenced to six years imprisonment in a Texas State Correctional Facility for prescribing a controlled substance with no legitimate medical purpose, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. (Houston Division), Kerr County District Attorney E...

LAREDO, Texas - A total of 12 drug traffickers have been handed federal prison sentences for their convictions related to a far-reaching drug trafficking conspiracy, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Edgar Loera and Miguel Angel Vives-Macias were...

LAREDO, Texas - A federal indictment has been partially unsealed following the arrest of 17 defendants in the Laredo and Dallas areas on charges related to a long-term investigation into a drug and money laundering conspiracy, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and...

BEAUMONT, Texas - A 40-year-old Nederland, Texas man has been sentenced to life in federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today. Stephen Shane Hall, also...

AUSTIN, Texas - In Austin last night, a jury convicted 44-year-old Bertram, TX, resident Jimmy Don Hardin of federal firearms and drug trafficking charges announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division, Acting United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr. and Texas Department of Public...

BROWNSVILLE, Texas - Mario Enrique Patlan, 45, Cristina Patlan, 23, and Reymundo Abel Brown Jr., 27, have all entered guilty pleas today in a long-running effort to smuggle drugs via UPS, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. All...