Gustavo Balderas, Cocaine Trafficking, Louisiana 2021

Cocaine Trafficking Ring Dismantled in Louisiana

A Texas man has pleaded guilty to his involvement in a cocaine trafficking operation in Louisiana. Gustavo Balderas, 34, of Texas, entered a guilty plea on June 30, 2021, before United States District Court Judge Martin L. C. Feldman.

According to court documents, on February 9, 2018, a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force learned that Rafael Molina, an upper-level narcotics trafficker, was en route to Thibodaux, Louisiana, to deliver two kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride the following day. Task Force officers established surveillance in Thibodaux and observed Molina, riding in a white pickup truck, and Balderas and an individual identified as Michael Garza, riding in a black Chrysler 300, registered to Garza, at a motel in Thibodaux.

Balderas and Garza entered the truck with Molina, and they drove from the motel. Officers conducted a traffic stop on the truck, searched both vehicles, and located an ice chest in the Chrysler 300. Inside the ice chest were two kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride.

Balderas faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a maximum term of forty years, a fine of up to $5,000,000.00, at least four years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment, and a $100 special assessment fee.

This prosecution is part of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a joint federal, state, and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and the nation's primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Office of Homeland Security Investigations, Terrebonne Parish Sheriff's Office, and the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney André Jones.

This is a developing story, and we will provide updates as more information becomes available.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edla/pr/texas-man-pleads-guilty-violation-federal-controlled-substances-act