SAN ANTONIO - In San Antonio today, 46-year-old Esiquiel (aka “Cheke”), a former major drug trafficker in the Piedras Negras “Plaza,” pleaded guilty to his leadership role in the importation and distribution of thousands of kilograms of narcotics into the United States from Mexico announced DEA Special Agent in Charge...

BEAUMONT, Texas - Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney John M. Bales announced today the indictment of 24 individuals who operated a major drug distribution ring and were responsible for trafficking methamphetamine to customers across the United States, including in the...

ORLANDO, Fla. - Senior U.S. District Judge Wm. Terrell Hodges has sentenced James Bryan Swoll, a/k/a “Squid,” (37, Ocala) to 10 years in federal prison for distributing five kilograms or more of cocaine and money laundering. He was also ordered to forfeit $350,000 worth of real property that was traceable...

ORLANDO, Fla. - United States District Judge Paul G. Byron today sentenced Richard (46, Viera) to 10 years in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release, for attempting to aid and abet the distribution of cocaine. A federal jury found him guilty on January 9, 2015. According to...

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Rodney D. Butler, a/k/a “Rodney Davenport,” 48, of the Houston, Texas, area, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute more than 50 kilograms of cocaine and conspiring to launder tens of thousands of dollars in cocaine-derived currency. The plea was announced today by A.D. Wright, Acting Special...

LAREDO, Texas - Altagracia Guadalupe Vargas, 28, of Laredo, has been convicted of conspiracy and possession with the intent to distribute Heroin, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. The jury returned its verdict following a three-day trial and...

McALLEN, Texas - Two McAllen men have received significant sentences for conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute marijuana and conspiring to launder the drug proceeds, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Alberto Alaniz, 51, and Jose...

HOUSTON - Former Houston Police (HPD) officer Marcos E. Carrion has been ordered to federal prison for his role in a drug conspiracy, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Carrion entered a guilty plea to the charge Thursday...

LAREDO, Texas - Jose Manuel Saldivar-Farias aka “Z-31” or “El Borrado” has been charged with conspiracy to possess marijuana allegations after illegally entering the U.S., announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Saldivar-Farias, 27, is alleged to be a...

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...