A 19-year-old Laredo woman has been handed a 60-month prison sentence for her role in a massive narcotics smuggling operation. Valeria Yazmin Santos-Perez, 19, was found guilty of conspiracy to import methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin from Mexico.
According to court documents, Santos-Perez admitted to driving a Mercedes-Benz SUV across the Lincoln-Juarez Bridge, where Customs and Border Protection agents discovered bundles of narcotics hidden beneath the center console and floorboards of the vehicle.
In total, agents found nine bundles of cocaine weighing 9.54 kilograms, two bundles of brown heroin weighing 1.22 kilograms, five bundles of black tar heroin weighing 1.16 kilograms, and 168 bundles of methamphetamine weighing 19.04 kilograms.
At the time of her plea, Santos-Perez said she had smuggled narcotics in a similar manner once previously and was paid $6,000 to drive the vehicle to Fort Worth.
During sentencing, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia-Marmolejo asked Santos-Perez if she had given any thought to the harm that would be caused by bringing a large quantity of narcotics into the United States. Santos-Perez admitted that she had not.
U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick announced the conviction, stating that Santos-Perez’s actions had serious consequences for the community.
Santos-Perez will be immediately followed by three years of supervised release after serving her prison sentence. She has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protection conducted the investigation, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Bukiewicz prosecuting the case.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|Sex Crimes|Cybercrime|Public Corruption|Weapons|Human Trafficking|White Collar Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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