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Mexican National Sentenced to 5 Years for Smuggling Meth in Framed Art
PITTSBURGH – In a brazen attempt to traffic narcotics, 31-year-old Carmelo Rojas-Perez, a Mexican citizen living in Pittsburgh, has been sentenced to 60 months of incarceration and five years of supervision on his conviction of violating federal narcotics laws.
Chief United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentence on Rojas-Perez, who will be deported back to Mexico after serving his prison sentence. The defendant’s sentence serves as a stark reminder of the harsh consequences of narcotics trafficking.
According to court documents, Rojas-Perez initially received a ‘test’ package from Toluca, Mexico, containing a framed religious picture with no drugs. However, he soon received two additional framed religious pictures, which contained nearly one kilogram of methamphetamine hidden inside hollowed-out frames.
Federal Homeland Security Agents and Pennsylvania State Police Western Interdiction Unit Troopers executed a search warrant at Rojas-Perez’s residence, preventing the methamphetamine from reaching the streets. Investigators also found his cellphone, which contained text messages with his methamphetamine co-conspirators and pictures of apparent drugs on top of piles of money.
The seized methamphetamine is estimated to be worth between $22,000 and $45,000 on the street, depending on how much it was diluted before reaching actual drug users. The drugs involved an estimated 3,500 to 7,000 individual hits of methamphetamine.
During the sentencing hearing, Judge Conti noted that unlike American citizens, illegal aliens are not eligible for early release from their sentences, do not get credit for completing drug programs, and often are unable to serve their time in a minimum security facility.
Assistant United States Attorney Ross E. Lenhardt prosecuted this case on behalf of the government. U.S. Attorney Hickton commended Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Pennsylvania State Police Western Interdiction Unit for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Carmelo Rojas-Perez.
Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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