ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Honduran national was sentenced to 21 years in prison for conspiring to import cocaine into the United States, as part of an international drug trafficking organization known as the ‘Los Valles’ Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO).
Mario Rojel Urbina Miranda, 41, was one of the highest-ranking members of the DTO, which imported multi-ton quantities of cocaine from South America to the United States.
According to court documents, for years, Urbina coordinated the trafficking of tons of cocaine through Honduras, en route to the United States, and collected millions of dollars of drug proceeds. For example, during a two-month period in 2014, the defendant was personally involved in trafficking over 2,000 kilograms of cocaine through Honduras.
The DTO bribed public officials in Honduras and relied on violence and the threat of violence to protect its extensive trafficking activity. Urbina is the thirteenth related defendant to plead guilty in this investigation.
U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber, DEA Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget, and FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis, III.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip Alito and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Bibeane Metsch prosecuted the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia expresses its appreciation to the Virginia State Police, FBI Sacramento Field Office, the Sacramento OCDETF Strike Force, DEA and FBI Tegucigalpa Country Offices, and the Honduran National Police for their significant assistance in this case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided significant assistance.
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Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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