Mexico City Man Convicted in Del Rio Cocaine, Heroin Import

Guillermo Rodriguez-Sanchez, a 42-year-old man from Mexico City, was convicted late yesterday afternoon by a federal jury in Del Rio on charges of importing cocaine and heroin into the United States. The verdict seals a years-long case tied to a 2016 border crossing that brought more than $200,000 worth of narcotics into Texas hidden in the guts of a Toyota Tundra.

According to trial evidence, on March 16, 2016, Rodriguez-Sanchez attempted to enter the U.S. through the Eagle Pass Port of Entry Number One. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers grew suspicious of the 2007 Toyota Tundra he was driving. A search revealed a concealed compartment inside the vehicle’s air intake manifold. Inside: four bricks of cocaine weighing approximately four kilograms and one brick of heroin totaling 1.4 kilograms.

Prosecutors presented testimony establishing the street value of the seized narcotics at roughly $200,000. Despite the evidence, Rodriguez-Sanchez denied knowledge of the drugs at the time of his arrest. Federal authorities say the sophistication of the hidden compartment undermines his claim of innocence.

The defendant now faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years in federal prison, with the possibility of life behind bars. Sentencing is scheduled for April 4, 2017, at 10:00 am before United States District Judge Alia Moses in Del Rio. Rodriguez-Sanchez remains in federal custody with no bond.

The investigation was a joint operation between Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). HSI Special Agent in Charge Shane Folden, San Antonio Division, and DEA Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division, stood alongside U.S. Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., in announcing the conviction.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Goran Krnaich and Justin Chung prosecuted the case for the federal government. The conviction underscores ongoing federal efforts to dismantle cross-border drug operations funneling narcotics from Mexico into Texas and beyond.

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