Mexican heroin trafficker Jose Antonio Medina Arreguin was sentenced Wednesday to 22 years in prison after pleading guilty last month to conspiring to possess heroin for sale.
Arreguin, 36-year-old from Apatzingán, Michoacán, Mexico, admitted that the conspiracy involved more than 40 kilograms - or 88 pounds - of heroin.
Arreguin's wife and four children have had their passports taken away by U.S. officials. So Arreguin will not be able to see them during his incarceration.
Arreguin, also known as "Don Pepe," was booked into county jail on Oct. 13 after being extradited from Mexico more than six months after he was arrested in a remote area of Michoacán on a warrant issued in Ventura County.
Allegedly, he masterminded the transportation of large shipments of drugs in secret compartments in vehicles across the border to homes in Oxnard, Downey, Los Angeles, Long Beach and San Jose.
Detectives intercepted a money shipment and found more than $195,000 in an electronically activated, hidden compartment of one vehicle in 2009. Money from the drug sales was illegally transported out of the country and into Mexico on a regular basis. About once a week, Arreguin would get between $100,000 and $260,000.
Drug trafficking is typically the most serious type of drug crime that a person may be accused of committing. These charges may involve the unlawful cultivation, manufacturing, transportation, sale or distribution of controlled substances such as cocaine, marijuana, heroin, ecstasy, methamphetamine or prescription drugs.
This is often charged as a federal offense, particularly when it occurs on a large scale and involves crossed state lines or national borders.
In the face of drug trafficking charges, contact Ventura County Criminal Defense Attorney
Robert Helfend. With over 20 years of experience, he is committed to the vigorous defense of clients at either a state or federal level.