Cartel Leader in Idaho sentenced to 22 years in Federal Prison
BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) - A 44-year-old Honduran national using the name “Hector Ojeda Manuel Aponte” was sentenced Wednesday to 262 months in federal prison for distribution of methamphetamine, Acting U.S. Attorney Justin Whatcott announced.
“The United States Department of Justice is committed to eliminating the threat posed by Mexican drug cartels and their distribution of narcotics in Idaho.” Acting U.S. Attorney Whatcott said. “Along with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, we will continue to hold them accountable for bringing poisonous drugs into our state.”
According to court records, Aponte distributed around 40 pounds of methamphetamine every one to two weeks, along with fentanyl pills and bath salts. He employed various vehicles for transportation, used stash houses to hide drugs, and had business fronts for laundering proceeds. Sources indicate that Aponte was the “number one guy” of the Sinaloa Cartel in Idaho, with a well-established supply chain and a network of accomplices.
Aponte is the sixth and final defendant sentenced from an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Nampa Police Department's Special Investigations Unit. U.S. District Judge Amanda K. Brailsford previously sentenced Ernesto Diaz Gaspar to 30 months, Wilkin Rolando Martinez Munguia to 36 months, Cevin Alfonzo to 42 months, and Jesus DeJesus Loera to 70 months in federal prison. Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye sentenced Lawrence Barnes to 160 months in prison. Defendants Barnes and Loera are U.S. Citizens, while the remaining defendants are aliens unlawfully present in the United States, according to court documents.
“Illegal immigration and drug trafficking are interconnected threats because Foreign Terrorist Organizations like the Sinaloa Cartel routinely employ people like this defendant to further their drug enterprises,” said David F. Reames, Special Agent in Charge, DEA Seattle Field Division. “I am gratified that we, at the Drug Enforcement Administration, along with our partners at the Nampa Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, succeeded in holding this defendant accountable for his serious crimes targeting our community, resulting in this lengthy prison sentence. Justice was served yesterday.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Whatcott praised the Drug Enforcement Administration and Nampa Police Department for their roles in the convictions and sentences. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Morse handled the prosecution.
