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Florida Pilot Gets 85 Months for Cocaine Trafficking Role
Rupert De Las Casas, a 64-year-old pilot from Miami, Florida, was sentenced to 85 months of imprisonment, time already served, and three years of supervised release for his role in two separate cocaine trafficking conspiracies. De Las Casas pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine for the purpose of unlawful importation in the District of Connecticut.
According to court documents and statements made in court, De Las Casas conspired with others to transport approximately 1700 kilograms of cocaine from South America to the U.S. On August 6, 2016, De Las Casas and Ronier Sanchez Alonso flew a private jet from the Dominican Republic to Venezuela, where the cocaine was to be loaded onto the jet. De Las Casas was the pilot and Sanchez was the co-pilot.
The plane crash-landed just short of a landing strip in Venezuela, and De Las Casas, Sanchez, and another co-conspirator evaded capture by Venezuelan authorities and diverted the cocaine back to Colombia. De Las Casas was arrested on April 15, 2017, and pleaded guilty to the charge on October 23, 2019. He has been detained since his arrest.
De Las Casas was also charged in the Central District of California for his participation in a separate cocaine trafficking conspiracy. His case was transferred to the District of Connecticut, and on February 27, 2024, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine for the purpose of unlawful importation.
Sanchez, a citizen of Mexico, was arrested in Asuncion, Paraguay, on March 25, 2021, and extradited to the U.S. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 48 months of imprisonment on December 20, 2023. Another co-conspirator, Arrinson De La Cruz, was charged separately for his role in the scheme and other drug trafficking activity. De La Cruz pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 144 months of imprisonment on November 20, 2019.
This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration New Haven Task Force, which includes members from the DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, Connecticut State Police, and local police departments. The DEA Country Office in Paraguay, Interpol, and the Paraguayan National Police assisted the investigation.
U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California for its assistance in this prosecution. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Kale through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program.
Key Facts
- State: Connecticut
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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