How far will drug cartels go to smuggle their product into the United States? History has shown they'll go as far as they have to, including underground. USA TODAY
A Mexican citizen who was in the United States illegally was given a lengthy federal prison sentence earlier this month for his part in an alleged methamphetamine distribution ring.
Javier Contreras Vargas, who also goes by the alias “Cuñado,” was sentenced June 11 for his role in the methamphetamine distribution conspiracy by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey.
Vargas was given 235 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to the offense of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute a controlled substance in August 2017, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Northern District of Texas.
He was reportedly in the U.S. illegally at the time of the offense and will be deported after serving his sentence, which is almost 20 years. Vargas has been in custody since his arrest in August 2016.
Vargas and 21 other people were charged with various offenses in connection to an alleged methamphetamine distribution ring. Of the 21 others, two are still awaiting trial.
According to documents filed in the case, Vargas and the others conspired to distribute the methamphetamine between Jan. 1, 2015, and July 7, 2015.
The ring reportedly used coded language to purchase multiple kilograms of the illegal narcotic so that Vargas could distribute the drug to other people.
On July 7, 2015, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop, and Vargas was found to be in possession of 2 kilograms – about 4.4 pounds, or over 70 ounces – of methamphetamine.
Officers searched his residence and found about 17 kilograms – nearly 37.5 pounds – of methamphetamine.
They also seized a firearm and several thousand dollars in U.S. currency. As part of his plea agreement, Vargas agreed to forfeit those items, including $25,137.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations – with assistance from the Dallas Police Department and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations Division – investigated the distribution ring.