BROWNSVILLE, Texas – Rafael Villanueva, a 40-year-old resident of Brownsville, has been ordered to federal prison following his role in trafficking more than 1,000 kilograms of cocaine, worth $26 million in drug proceeds.
The jury deliberated for less than three hours before convicting Villanueva on January 28, following a six-day trial. Today, U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr. ordered Villanueva to serve the rest of his life in federal prison. The court also ordered Villanueva to pay a $1,193,070 money judgment as repayment for the drug money he illegally laundered.
“This sentencing is the result of a long-term complex investigation led by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies who continue to serve and protect our public and national security,” said Deputy Special Agent in Charge Timothy Tubbs of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “HSI and our counterparts will continue to protect our nation from transnational criminal organizations that seek to bring harm to our communities and our nation.”
The sentencing of Villanueva demonstrates how law enforcement agencies focus investigative resources against drug trafficking organizations that import large shipments of hard drugs from Mexico and deliver them to cities throughout the United States, said Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “DEA and our partners remain determined to identify, dismantle, and destroy drug trafficking organizations that import and spread their poison in cities across our nation.”
During the trial, the jury heard from approximately 21 witnesses who detailed Villanueva’s role as head of a drug transportation group that moved cocaine from the Rio Grande Valley and on to cities throughout the United States. Villanueva had customers in Mexico who needed transportation for cocaine to areas throughout the United States, including Houston; Chicago, Illinois; Jackson, Mississippi; as well as locations in South and North Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia. He also provided transportation for drug proceeds sold throughout the United States back to the Rio Grande Valley.
Villanueva was found guilty of possession with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and conspiracy to do so, conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, bulk cash smuggling, and international money laundering. Villanueva has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation known as La Camelia identified, disrupted, and dismantled the highest-level criminal organizations that threatened the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found on the OCDETF webpage.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen Betancourt, Jody Young, and Paul are commended for their hard work in making this conviction a reality.
Related Federal Cases
- John Doe, Western Union Scam, California 2022 · Washington
- Benito Aguilar-Ozuna, Cocaine Trafficking, Texas 2013 · North Carolina
- Ruel M Hamilton, Texas Drug Trafficking, Dallas TX, 2019 · Texas
- Terry Ray White Jr., Armed Drug Trafficking, Texas 2017 · New York
- Jorge Molina-Sanchez, Cocaine and Heroin Trafficking, North Carolina 2013 · North Carolina
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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