Horace Lee Caruther, Cocaine Trafficking, Texas 2023
A Texas-based cocaine trafficking ring has been dismantled after 17 defendants, including ringleader Horace Lee Caruther, were sentenced in federal court.
The group, operating in and around Taylor, TX, was responsible for distributing large amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine from July 2016 to October 2017.
According to court records, the organization transported narcotics from Laredo to Central Texas and ultimately to areas across the U.S., including North Carolina, for further distribution.
Defendants would also collect, transport and launder cash proceeds derived from the sale of narcotics.
To date, this investigation has resulted in the arrests and conviction of 20 defendants; and, the seizure of $161,020 in U.S. Currency, six kilograms of cocaine, two ounces of 'crack' cocaine, 42 pounds of marijuana and, three guns.
U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel sentenced the following defendants:
- Horace Lee Caruther, age 43 of Round Rock, TX, to 210 months in federal prison;
- William Collins (aka 'Bugs'), age 62 of Taylor, TX, to 87 months in federal prison;
- Trevor Deshaun Hunt, age 26 of Taylor, to 57 months in federal prison;
- Gregory Bean, Jr., age 45 of Pflugerville, TX, to 15 months in federal prison;
- Robert Carl White, age 39 of Temple, TX, to 77 months in federal prison;
- Angel Amado Rodriguez, age 24 of Austin, to 188 months in federal prison;
- Kenneth Xavier Garza, age 23 of Austin, to 60 months in federal prison;
- Esmerelda Rodriguez, age 23 of Austin, to three years probation;
- Salomon Orozco-Benitez (aka 'Viejito'), age 34 of Austin, to 168 months in federal prison;
- Elias Montiel, age 27 of Sanford, NC, to 46 months in federal prison;
- Federico Alvarez-Mendoza, age 37 of Cameron, NC, to 30 months in federal prison;
- David Ibarra, age 26 of Broadway, NC, to 30 months in federal prison;
- Miguel Benitez-Benitez (aka 'Daniel Sanchez Benitez'), age 39 of Pflugerville, to 262 months in federal prison;
- Sandra Parra-Velez (aka 'La Coyota'), age 34 of Austin, to 70 months in federal prison;
- Jose Parra-Martinez (aka 'Vitaminas'), age 36 of Austin, to 60 months in federal prison;
- Maria Loreto Bustamonte, age 53 of Laredo, TX, to time served (approx. 14 months incarceration); and,
- Ana Patricia Gonzalez, age 48 of Laredo, to three years probation.
The DEA Austin High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force investigated this case. The Austin Police Department, Cedar Park Police Department, Georgetown Police Department, Lakeway Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety, Williamson County Sheriff's Office, Travis County Sheriff's Office, Hays County Sheriff's Office, Bastrop County Sheriff's Office, FBI, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are participating agencies in the HIDTA Task Force.
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →