HSI Phoenix, multiagency investigation results in lengthy prison sentence for Mexico-based narcotics trafficker
PHOENIX – On June 28, a Mexican national was sentenced to 20 years in prison, followed by 60 months of supervised release, for his involvement in drug trafficking as the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration, HSI Mexico City, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, and the West Desert Task Force.
Juan Carlos Juarez-Torres, 41, previously pleaded guilty on Oct. 13, 2021, to conspiracy to import marijuana, conspiracy to distribute marijuana, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
“Criminals like Juarez-Torres profit from drug smuggling, snaring addicts along the way,” said Scott Brown, special agent in charge of HSI Phoenix. “Let this extensive sentence serve as a reminder that HSI works tirelessly with our law enforcement and judicial partners to bring to justice those who supply our streets with drugs.”
In October 2014, HSI began an 18-month wiretap investigation of Mexico-based members of a large international drug-trafficking organization (DTO) that smuggled multiple tons of marijuana from Mexico into the southern Arizona desert. Juarez-Torres coordinated and directed marijuana smuggling activities on behalf of the DTO and the pick-up and repatriation of marijuana proceeds to DTO members in Mexico. Additionally, Juarez-Torres coordinated and directed the purchase and smuggling of firearms and ammunition and the acquisition and distribution of equipment and vehicles for use by the DTO. HSI also intercepted communications between Juarez-Torres and other members of the DTO regarding the killing of rival drug traffickers, bribing public officials in furtherance of the DTO’s illicit activities, and the use of residences to store marijuana smuggled into the United States.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Phoenix, handled the prosecution.
Learn more about HSI’s commitment to combatting narcotics in Arizona at @HSIPhoenix.
HSI is the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, specifically those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure through which international trade, travel, and finance move. HSI’s workforce of over 10,400 employees consists of more than 7,100 special agents assigned to 220 cities throughout the United States, and 80 overseas locations in 53 countries. HSI’s international presence represents DHS’s largest investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest international footprints in U.S. law enforcement.
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