HARRISONBURG, Va. – Abel Gallegos Hernandez, 30, was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison for conspiring to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine.
The investigation revealed that Hernandez, an inmate serving time in Georgia, coordinated the distribution of the methamphetamine using drug packages hidden in tires of vehicles being shipped from New Mexico to Virginia.
According to court documents, Hernandez used Facebook and a contraband cellphone from inside McRae Correctional Facility in Georgia to arrange for the delivery of four separate shipments of methamphetamine from New Mexico to the Waynesboro area between January and June 2018.
The shipments totaled nearly 30 kilograms of pure methamphetamine, with Hernandez arranging for the drugs to be hidden inside the tires of vehicles being hauled on tractor-trailer car-haulers.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, Waynesboro Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the New Mexico State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Ronald M. Huber prosecuted the case for the United States.
Abel Gallegos Hernandez, 30, pleaded guilty in June 2020 to one count of conspiring to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine and one count of aiding and abetting another’s attempt to knowingly and intentionally possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.
The charges stem from Hernandez’s activities while incarcerated in the Bureau of Prisons in Georgia in June 2018.
Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar and Special Agent in Charge Raymond Villanueva for HSI’s Washington, D.C. field office announced the sentence today.
Related Federal Cases
- Linwood Douglas Thorne, Drug Conspiracy, Washington DC 2022 · Washington
- Christopher M. Sullivan, Methamphetamine Distribution, Virginia 2025 · Washington
- Christopher R. Kavanaugh, No Crime Charged, Virginia 2021 · Washington
- Michael James Peters, Making a False Statement, West Virginia 2022 · Washington
- Benjamin Britford, Bank Larceny, West Virginia 2023 · New York
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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