A Mexican national has been sentenced to 151 months in prison and five years of supervised release for his role in a large-scale drug trafficking operation in the Charlotte area.
Jose Velasquez, 38, was sentenced yesterday in federal court for his involvement in the distribution of bulk quantities of cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine. He was also found guilty of money laundering and illegal reentry.
According to court documents, Velasquez was a member of a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that operated in the greater Charlotte area and throughout Western North Carolina. He laundered drug proceeds to the DTO leaders in Mexico via money wires and used his boutique shop, Envios & Botique Rosita, to conduct his drug trafficking activities.
On January 24, 2020, law enforcement arrested Velasquez on criminal illegal reentry charges and executed search warrants at his residence and vehicle, seizing over two kilograms of heroin, half a kilogram of cocaine, and approximately half a kilogram of fentanyl and methamphetamine.
Velasquez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine, money laundering conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute heroin, and illegal reentry of a deported alien subsequent to the conviction for an aggravated felony.
The DEA and HSI led the investigation, which is the result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation. Velasquez is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. He will also be subject to deportation proceedings upon the completion of his federal sentence.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Regina Pack and Kenneth Smith of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.
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Key Facts
- State: North Carolina
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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