Two Tons of Cocaine: Renteria-Renteria Gets Prison

NEWPORT NEWS, VA – Another piece of the pipeline fell today as Yunier Renteria-Renteria, 28, of Colombia, was sentenced to two years and six months in federal prison for his role in a massive cocaine smuggling operation. This sentencing closes the book on a case involving over two tons of the drug, intercepted before it could flood U.S. streets.

Renteria-Renteria pled guilty on January 3rd to possession with intent to distribute cocaine on board a vessel. Court documents reveal he was part of a crew attempting to move 1,504 kilograms (over 3,300 pounds) of cocaine from the Colombian coast, utilizing a “go-fast” boat—a staple for drug runners—to connect with larger vessels destined for the United States. The operation was anything but subtle.

The jig was up on March 17, 2023, when a maritime patrol aircraft spotted the suspect vessel. As the crew realized law enforcement was onto them, they began frantically dumping their cargo overboard. The quick actions of the U.S. Coast Guard managed to recover a substantial portion of the cocaine—the 1,504 kilograms that ultimately sealed their fate. It was a desperate attempt to salvage a multi-million dollar shipment, but they failed.

Renteria-Renteria wasn’t working alone. Luis Valencia-Renteria, 27, also of Colombia, and Cesar Rodriguez, 30, of Ecuador, were also aboard the go-fast boat. Both Valencia and Rodriguez previously pled guilty, Valencia on August 3, 2023, and Rodriguez on August 14, 2023. They received the same sentence as Renteria-Renteria: two years and six months in prison, handed down on January 9th. The trio’s brazen attempt to bypass law enforcement has landed them where they belong.

The sentencing was announced by Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, alongside Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge for the DEA’s Washington Division, and Derek W. Gordon, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Washington, D.C., following a hearing before U.S. District Judge Jamar K. Walker. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric M. Hurt skillfully prosecuted the case, building a solid case against the smugglers.

This bust was no isolated incident. It’s part of a larger, ongoing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation, aimed at dismantling the highest-level criminal organizations threatening the nation. OCDETF focuses on intelligence-driven, multi-agency collaboration to cut off the head of the snake. Details about the OCDETF Program are available at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF. Court documents can be found on the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia website or through PACER (Case No. 4:23-cr-36). This operation sends a clear message: trafficking in Virginia—and across the U.S.—will be met with swift and severe consequences.