Cartel leader sentenced to federal prison, $2.7 million in drugs seized
200 kilograms of methaphetamine and 5 kilograms of heroin seized by Mexican Authorities in Reynosa (Source: Drug Enforcement Administration)
LAREDO, Texas - A cartel leader has been sentenced to federal prison for intent to distribute large amounts of illegal drugs throughout the United States.
29-year-old Juan Manuel Salazar Alvarez from Mexico pleaded guilty on Nov. 5, 2020, to having conspired to the possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl. A leader within Cartel De Jalisco Nueva Generacion, Alvarez was sentenced on July 1 to 23 years and six months in federal prison.
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However, as he is not a U.S. citizen, he is expected to face removal proceedings after he is imprisoned.
The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the case alongside Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces with the help of Laredo Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service, Border Patrol, Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office.
(Source: Drug Enforcement Administration)
Authorities said that during their investigation they seized about $2.7 million worth of drugs linked to Alvarez from 16 different locations between July 18, 2017, through Sept. 10, 2019. Records stated that he was ordered to pay back that money when he was sentenced.
According to a press release from the DEA, Alvarez was responsible for directing the cartel’s operations back in Mexico. He was in charge of couriers, stash house operators, and transportation coordinators.
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Reports stated the group would conceal multiple kilograms of drugs brought into Laredo, Texas, to be placed in storage units or tractor-trailers. The drugs were concealed as fire extinguishers, wooden blocks, car batteries, and hydraulic jacks to later be distributed into Houston, Dallas, Tennessee, Kentucky, and North Carolina.
40 kilograms of meth (Source: Drug Enforcement Administration)
Investigators said they found those involved with Alvarez during seizures of wooden and steel blocks, hydraulic jacks, batteries, or fire extinguishers that contained bundles of different drugs in multiple kilograms.
Alvarez is the last person among 11 others who were previously sentenced for their part in the conspiracy.
He will remain in custody until he is moved to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.