Seven members and associates of the Sinaloa Cartel have been sentenced to prison for their role in a drug trafficking conspiracy involving fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine. The defendants had previously pleaded guilty to these charges.
The individuals sentenced are Hector Alejandro Apodaca-Alvarez, 53, of Somerton, Arizona; Mark Anthony Roque Bustamante, 33, of Yuma, Arizona; Jorge Moreno, 28, of San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico; Jonathan Nicholas Chavez, 25, of Brawley, California; Luis Tejada Velasquez, 37, of San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico; Austin Toma Grupee, 43, of Providence, Rhode Island; and Jose Chavez Zaragoza, 38, of Yuma, Arizona. All were arrested in the United States.
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) National Drug Threat Assessment reports that the Sinaloa Cartel is at the heart of the fentanyl crisis. The cartel has developed global supply chain networks and operates clandestine labs in Mexico where they manufacture these drugs before utilizing their vast distribution networks to transport them into the United States. Fentanyl is considered the deadliest drug threat America has ever faced.
“The significant sentences imposed by the court reflect the deadly nature of the crimes committed by Mexican cartel members in flooding our communities with fentanyl and other lethal drugs,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.
“Guns and drugs are often linked when it comes to cartels,” added Director Steven Dettelbach of the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF). “This case exemplifies the incredible work going on every day by ATF agents and analysts around the country to protect the American public from dangerous criminals.”
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida stated that these defendants sold drugs for profit off a public health crisis — addiction.
From June 2022 through May 2023, Apodaca-Alvarez used the U.S. mail and his own trucking business to send tens of thousands of pressed fentanyl pills and kilogram-quantities of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine to an undercover agent based in South Florida.
During the conspiracy, Apodaca-Alvarez coordinated with the remaining codefendants to assist in distributing the controlled substances throughout the United States.
Law enforcement officers identified Roque Bustamante as Apodaca-Alvarez’s primary source of supply. In recorded conversations, Apodaca-Alvarez and Roque Bustamante inquired if the undercover agent would supply them with firearms to be smuggled into Mexico.
Apodaca-Alvarez was arrested in South Florida while delivering 16 kilograms of fentanyl and 2 kilograms of cocaine to the undercover agent during an operation. Moreno was present with Apodaca-Alvarez during this operation.
In total, law enforcement seized approximately 21 kilograms of pure fentanyl; 70 thousand rainbow-colored, pressed fentanyl pills; 3,000 M30 pressed fentanyl pills; 243 pounds of crystal methamphetamine; two kilograms of cocaine; and 24 firearms related to this conspiracy.
The defendants received varying sentences: Tejada Velasquez was sentenced to 242 months in prison; on May 2, Roque Bustamante was sentenced to life in prison, Grupee was sentenced to 262 months in prison, and Chavez was sentenced to 57 months in prison; on March 21, Apodaca-Alvarez was sentenced to life in prison, Moreno was sentenced to 121 months in prison, and Zaragoza was sentenced to 47 months in prison. Additionally, Apodaca-Alvarez agreed to forfeit his entire trucking business and Arizona-based residence.
The ATF Fort Lauderdale Field Division investigated the case, with assistance from several other agencies. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ajay J. Alexander, M. Catherine Koontz, and Brooke Latta for the Southern District of Florida and Assistant U.S. Attorney Addison Owen for the District of Arizona.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation which aims to identify, disrupt, and dismantle high-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States.