LAREDO, Texas — More than 56 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine were funneled across the border inside a gas tank, and 22-year-old Amado Flores-Casas Jr. of Elgin, Texas, is now paying the price. On September 1, 2017, Flores pleaded guilty to one count of importing methamphetamine, culminating in a 120-month federal prison sentence handed down today by U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison.
The operation unraveled on June 17, 2017, when Flores approached the Lincoln Juarez International Bridge in a white Ford F-150. Routine inspection turned critical when Customs and Border Protection agents ordered a secondary screening. Using a fiber optic scope, they detected crystallization and a thick milky substance mixed with gasoline inside the vehicle’s fuel tank — a red flag for liquid methamphetamine.
Authorities didn’t hesitate. The gas tank was removed on-site, and inside they found approximately 56.78 kilograms of the illicit drug. The smuggling method — dissolving meth into fuel — is a known tactic to evade detection, but not one that fools trained agents. Flores was arrested immediately.
Despite it being his first drug offense and lacking any history of violent crime, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick emphasized the severity of the import operation. “This was not casual possession. This was a calculated effort to flood Texas communities with a dangerous drug,” Patrick said, underscoring the federal crackdown on transnational narcotics.
Flores now faces a decade behind bars, followed by five years of supervised release. He will remain in federal custody until transferred to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility. No plea deals softened the blow — just hard time for a high-stakes gamble.
The investigation was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher S. Coker prosecuted the case, closing a chapter on a brazen attempt to exploit border infrastructure for criminal profit.
Related Federal Cases
- Texas Man PUCKETT Gets 70 Months for Meth Run · Oklahoma
- Nederland Man Gets 8 Years for Meth Push · Texas
- Texas Man Rosenaldo Benitez Jr. Gets 10 Years for Meth Conspiracy · Arkansas
- Fernando Arturo Flores-Fang Gets 340 Months for Drug Smuggling · Texas
- Deandre Bennett Gets 135 Months for Hauling 132 Kilo Meth Load · Texas
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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