Chemist for Mexican Cartel Gets 10 Years in Brooklyn

In a Brooklyn federal courtroom today, Jose Dagoberto Cortez-Perez, 28, known as “D.C.P.,” was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role as a chemist in a violent Mexican drug trafficking organization, where he refined and boosted the potency of narcotics flooding into the United States.

Cortez-Perez, a resident of Sinaloa, Mexico, pleaded guilty on September 25, 2017, to conspiring to import more than 500 grams of methamphetamine, over one kilogram of heroin, five kilograms of cocaine, and more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana. He was apprehended in Minnesota, where a May 2016 raid uncovered over 140 pounds of methamphetamine, $130,000 in cash, and evidence of an industrial-scale meth “cleaning” operation.

U.S. District Judge Carol Bagley Amon handed down the sentence, holding Cortez-Perez accountable for enhancing the purity and addictive power of cartel-produced drugs. His specialized work directly increased street value and demand, feeding addiction across communities in the Eastern District of New York, including Brooklyn and Queens.

“A Mexican cartel employed Jose Dagoberto Cortez-Perez for his specialized skill improving the quality and purity of illegal and addictive narcotics, in particular methamphetamine,” said Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. “He traveled the country on their behalf, turning toxic sludge into a marketable, deadly product.”

The investigation revealed a highly organized international network responsible for multi-ton shipments of heroin, meth, cocaine, and marijuana. Cortez-Perez’s role as a “cook” was pivotal—repairing batches that failed purity standards, ensuring the cartel’s product remained dominant in U.S. markets.

The case was prosecuted by the International Narcotics and Money Laundering Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Craig R. Heeren, Ryan C. Harris, Alicia N. Washington, G. Karthik Srinivasan, and Michael P. Robotti led the effort. After serving his sentence, Cortez-Perez will be deported from the United States. EDNY Docket No. 16-CR-241 (CBA).