A Mexican cartel boss and 27 coconspirators have been charged with laundering more than $10 million in drug proceeds through a local clothing retailer, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Erin Nealy Cox.

In a 38-count superseding indictment unsealed today, a federal grand jury charged 28 individuals connected to Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion – one of Mexico’s most violent and powerful drug cartels – with conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and other financial, drug, and gun crimes, including conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, conspiracy to distribute heroin, and possession of a firearm by an undocumented alien.

“Drug cartels like CJNG wreak havoc across the globe, driving the spread of deadly drugs like meth and heroin,” said U.S. Attorney Nealy Cox. “We’re committed to tracking the money and disrupting these organizations by attacking their bottom line. By striking both the money and the drugs, we can more effectively impact the organization.”

“Addiction to drugs has many different faces.  In this instance, the addiction to money and greed has met its consequence”, said Eduardo A. Chávez, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Dallas Field Division.  “Despite CJNG’s efforts to disguise their illegal activities into our North Texas communities, the DEA will seek to starve it of every last drug dollar and achieve justice for all those involved.”

According to court documents, Jose Valdovinos Jimenez, a plaza boss who goes by “La Roca” or “The Rock,” allegedly conspired with his codefendants to smuggle hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine and heroin across the Mexican border, distribute the drugs within the United States, launder the proceeds, and then transfer the money back to CJNG leaders.

In order to insulate himself from law enforcement activity and limit losses from law enforcement raids, Mr. Jimenez and other leaders of CJNG implemented a compartmentalized infrastructure, relying on couriers to smuggle the drugs across the border, recrystallization laboratories to purify drugs for sale, fortified stash houses to store the drugs before distribution, and a multi-level dealer network to handle the cash.

At Mr. Jimenez’s direction, mid- and upper-level dealers transported drug proceeds to Yoli’s Western Wear, a clothing retailer located on Buckner Boulevard in Dallas. The 23-year-old manager of Yoli’s, Ivan Noe Valerio, and his family members then counted the money and separated it into thousands of transactions, sending it through a money remitter back to CJNG in Mexico.

An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

If convicted, Mr. Jimenez and Mr. Valero face life in federal prison.

Other defendants charged in the scheme include:

Teodoro Valerio Perez (Valerio’s father)

Yolanda Mercado Valerio (Valerio’s mother)

Iris Yaneli Valerio (Valerio’s sister)

Laurentino DelaCruz, aka “Tino,” (alleged meth dealer)

Carlo LNU, aka “Gordo,” (alleged wire transactions handler)

Jesus Manuel Juarez Aguilar, aka “Chucho,” (alleged wire transactions handler)

Cuauhtemoc Gonzalez Del Rio  (alleged wire transactions handler)

Jonathan Rene Jacobo Mata  

Oscar Mario Flores Daza

Antonio Pena, Jr.

Eduardo Galdean Gress (alleged stash house distributor)

Lorenzo Piedra Chavez (alleged heroin dealer)

Blanca Flor Hernandez

Aniano Chavez Avila (alleged stash house distributor)

Raul Ceja Barajas (alleged laboratory operator)

Alejandro Garcia Lopez (alleged laboratory operator)

Joel Guillermo Torres (alleged drug courier)

Roberto Macias (alleged stash house distributor)

Alexander Alvarez  (alleged stash house distributor)

Edgar Eduardo Vicente Miranda  (alleged meth dealer)

Manuel Garcia Gomez (alleged laboratory operator)

Jorge Humberto Larios Velazco (alleged laboratory operator)

Arthur Ernest Rubalcaba (alleged stash house distributor)

Jose Alfredo Penalozo Perdomo

Carlos Michael Hernandez (alleged meth dealer)

Hobedt Moreno (alleged meth dealer)

 

During the course of this investigation, agents seized approximately 700 kilograms of methamphetamine, approximately 80 kilograms of heroin, and approximately $500,000 in drug proceeds. Dozens of the charged defendants have already been arrested.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Division, the Texas Department of Public Security, the U.S. Marshals Service, and ICE Enforcement & Removal Operations conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Midlothian Police Department and Ellis County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys PJ Meitl and Travis Elder are prosecuting the case.

A four-person cabal has been charged with plotting a hit on a DEA task force officer, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Erin Nealy Cox.

A federal grand jury indicted Manuel Garcia Gomez, 22, Jorge Humberto Velazco Larios, 27, Eva Denisse Gomez Garcia, 38, and Alicia Yuritzi Juarez Martinez, 31, for conspiracy to use interstate commerce in the commission of murder-for-hire.

Mr. Gomez and Mr. Larios have been arrested and will make their initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Toliver this afternoon at 2 p.m. Ms. Garcia and Ms. Martinez remain fugitives and are believed to be in Mexico.

“The Justice Department will not stand for retaliatory violence against officers and agents,” said U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox. “These defendants were plotting to murder a federal task force officer – a man who routinely risks his life to combat the scourge of drugs in our community. We are grateful to our partners at the DEA and FBI who worked tirelessly to keep the officer safe and help bring his would-be killers to justice.”

According to the indictment, unsealed today, Mr. Gomez – who was behind bars at Johnson County Jail on a methamphetamine charge – allegedly told another individual at the jail he wanted to “off” the DEA agent assigned to his case. He set the budget at $20,000: $5,000 up front and $15,000 following the hit.

In a subsequent phone call with an individual outside the jail, Mr. Gomez confirmed he wanted the agent murdered.

Mr. Gomez then called his girlfriend, Ms. Martinez, and his sister, Ms. Garcia, to arrange for delivery of the murder-for-hire fee. He advised them that the co-defendant in his drug case, Mr. Larios, would also contribute to the up-front payment.

Meanwhile, Mr. Larios, also behind bars, called an unindicted co-conspirator and asked him to deliver money to a workshop “so we can take care of something.”

On June 11, the unindicted co-conspirator, referred to in court documents by the nickname “Roberto,” made a $3,000 “down payment” for the murder of the agent. Five days later, he made an additional $2,000 payment on behalf of Mr. Gomez and Mr. Larios.

Mr. Gomez once again called his contact outside the jail. He described the DEA agent he wanted killed, then instructed the individual to call Ms. Martinez and Ms. Garcia, who he said had documents that could help the hit man figure out the name of the target. Mr. Gomez said the women were “badasses” who “know everything that is going on.”

Shortly thereafter, Ms. Garcia received a photo of DEA task force officer “T.H.” via the messaging app, WhatsApp. The following day, she flashed the image during a jailhouse video call with Mr. Gomez.  

“Yes, that’s him,” Mr. Gomez told Ms. Garcia, smiling.

“Drug trafficking is inherently violent and traffickers will stop at nothing to protect their profits and their lifestyle,” said Eduardo A. Chavez, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Dallas Field Division.  “DEA agents and task force officers constantly put themselves in harm’s way to ensure these individuals are brought to justice. We appreciate our federal partners’ swift efforts to bring accountability to their nefarious intentions.”   

"The Dallas Violent Crime Task Force is dedicated to protecting our citizens. This includes ensuring the safety of our law enforcement partners," said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Matthew DeSarno. "The defendants wanted to harm a DEA task force officer and that is unacceptable. Fortunately, we were able to prevent a dangerous act from occurring and successfully apprehend a group of violent criminals."

An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

If convicted, these defendants face up to 10 years in federal prison. (Had the hit been carried out as planned, they would have faced a possible death sentence or life imprisonment.)

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office, Violent Crime Task Force, conducted the investigation in close collaboration with the Drug Enforcement Administrations’ Dallas Field Division. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Marshals Service, and U.S. Customs & Border Protection assisted in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rick Calvert is handling the prosecution.