A Mexican national was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison for possessing with intent to distribute heroin in Bakersfield, California.
Antonio Beltran-Chaidez, 54, was sentenced on an unspecified date in 2022 after being found guilty of the crime, which was uncovered during a federal wiretap investigation into Jorge Calderon-Campos, 42, of Bakersfield.
According to court documents, in January 2022, Beltran-Chaidez recruited his brother, Jose Beltran-Chaidez, 68, to deliver more than 2 pounds of heroin to Calderon-Campos, who was the target of the investigation. However, when Calderon-Campos was unable to sell the drug, Jose Beltran-Chaidez retrieved it at Beltran-Chaidez’s direction and was in possession of the heroin when stopped by a law enforcement officer for a traffic violation.
Calderon-Campos and Jose Beltran-Chaidez recently pleaded guilty to their involvement in a larger drug conspiracy and are scheduled for sentencing on October 21, 2024, and November 4, 2024, respectively. They face a mandatory statutory minimum penalty of 10 years and a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison, along with a $10 million fine.
The case was the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Secret Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Kern County High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, the CHP, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, the Kern County Probation Department, and the Bakersfield Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar prosecuted the case, which was investigated under the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.
The case is a significant victory in the fight against heroin trafficking in the Central Valley of California.
Mandatory Facts:
- Defendant: Antonio Beltran-Chaidez, 54
- Criminal Charges: Possessing with Intent to Distribute Heroin
- City and State: Bakersfield, California
- Exact Date: January 2022
- Sentence: Three years and 10 months in prison
- Dollar Amounts: $10 million fine
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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