A Stuarts Draft man is facing 15 years to life in prison after pleading guilty in Nelson County to one count of racketeering and two felony drug charges in a case linked to a Mexican cartel that netted more than 12 pounds of methamphetamine and cocaine.
Victor Manuel Romero-Cornejo, 32, pleaded guilty on March 13 in Nelson County Circuit Court to racketeering, one count of possession with intent to distribute more than 200 grams or more of meth and one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Nelson County Commonwealth’s Attorney Daniel Rutherford said Romero-Cornejo is the last conviction among a handful of defendants in Nelson County’s first racketeering case. The group is a part of a Mexican cartel and affiliated with a much larger network that is the focus of an investigation by The Skyline Task Force, which consists of investigators from area agencies, including the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office, Rutherford said.
Laura Grado-Ortega, of Waynesboro; Alma Silva, of Afton; Joey Lee Cook, of Mount Solon; and Fernando Gonzalez-Hernandez also have been convicted of felony charges in connection with the case and await sentencing. Romero-Cornejo is scheduled for sentencing June 5 in Nelson County, court records show.
“There’s never been a bust this large for meth in Nelson County,” said Rutherford.
While the related racketeering cases turned up weapons, drugs and other evidence in multiple jurisdictions, more than eight pounds of methamphetamine and more than four pounds of cocaine also were recovered in a storage unit in Afton rented by Romero-Cornejo. According to prosecutors’ evidence, the drugs have a street value of more than $500,000.
Rutherford, who took office in November 2016, said more than 4,000 work hours have been put into the task force’s operation, which includes the Waynesboro Police Department, Staunton Police Department, Augusta County Sheriff’s Office, Virginia State Police, the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.
Rutherford said combating meth, a growing epidemic in the region, is an issue he took seriously when he was elected.
“It’s worse than a problem,” he said.
Describing the epidemic as like a python strangling its prey, he said the task force has made significant strides in cutting off its head.
“The amount of money we have taken off the street is enormous,” Rutherford said.
Grado-Ortega pleaded guilty to racketeering last October. From March to September 2016, she facilitated shipments of more than two pounds of meth from Mexico to Nelson County, as well as wired revenue from drug sales to individuals in Mexico, Rutherford has said.
She admitted to sending between $15,000 and $20,000 in wire transfers, according to prosecutors’ evidence. Silva pleaded guilty last October to one count of distribution of more than 100 pounds of meth. According to court records, a felony racketeering charge was not prosecuted against her as part of a plea agreement.
Silva facilitated the distribution of methamphetamine to individuals in Nelson County as well as wired drug sale revenue to individuals in Mexico, Rutherford has said.
Wire transfer receipts of money from Virginia to Mexico recovered in connection with Grado-Ortega’s case totaled over $56,000 in U.S. currency, according to prosecutors’ evidence.
Silva is set for sentencing on May 4 while Grado-Ortega faces sentencing on May 8. Cook, who was found guilty of racketeering last November, is set for sentencing on June 5.
Gonzalez-Hernandez, who was convicted last November of racketeering and possession with intent to distribute more than 100 grams or more of meth, is scheduled for sentencing May 22, court records show.
Meanwhile, money forfeited from drug cases overall in Nelson County has seen a large recent uptick.
Rutherford’s office forfeited $172,408 in drug dealer assets in 2017, according to a Jan. 22 news release.
The money forfeited represent the largest forfeiture by the Nelson County Commonwealth’s Attorney Office for a single year, and is larger than amounts forfeited from 2009 through 2016 combined, according to Rutherford.
Staff writer Emily Brown contributed.