Romanian national sentenced for plot to bring 400 kilograms of cocaine into US

A Romanian man was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison after trying to buy more than 400 kilograms of cocaine and bring it into the United States.

Marius Lazar, of Bucharest, Romania, was sentenced this week for his role in a plot that included money laundering, buying weapons and assassinating rival gang members.

Motorcycle gang member tried to traffic cocaine into US

The backstory:

According to court documents, the 51-year-old Lazar, a founding member of his local Hells Angels Motorcycle Club attempted to buy more than 400 kilograms of cocaine from a person in the United States.

That person was actually an undercover agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration.

As part of the deal to buy cocaine, Lazar also called on the undercover agent to kill two members of a rival motorcycle club in Romania. Lazar offered to supply rifles, grenades, armored vehicles and other equipment that would be used against police.

People who took part in the conspiracy paid nearly $1 million to the United States through bank wires and Bitcoin transfers.

A jury in Beaumont convicted Lazar in Nov. 2023.

What's next:

Two other people involved in the case, Murray Michael Matthews and Marc Patrick Johnson are still on the run.

The Source: Information in this article comes from the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas.

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