Mexican citizen sentenced to 9 years for importing fentanyl after HSI Laredo investigation
LAREDO, Texas — A judge sentenced a Mexican citizen Feb. 10 to nine years in federal prison for conspiracy to import 28 pounds of fentanyl labeled as tomatoes. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, investigated the case.
The court sentenced Angel Amed Gomez-Garcia, 43, to 108 months in federal prison. Not a U.S. citizen, Gomez-Garcia will likely face removal proceedings. Gomez-Garcia pleaded guilty Nov. 9.
“Fentanyl continues to cause great damage to our communities,” said HSI San Antonio acting Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee. “HSI will continue to use every resource available to identify traffickers like Gomez-Garcia who import this poison to the citizens of South Texas. Today’s sentence not only holds Gomez-Garcia accountable for his crimes but serves as a warning to those who are fueling the opioid epidemic.”
According to court documents, on Aug. 23, Gomez-Garcia attempted to enter the United States after driving from Mexico across the Lincoln/Juarez International Bridge in Laredo. He claimed he was simply going to shop. However, upon inspection, authorities found 12 bundles containing approximately 13 kilograms of fentanyl hidden in the rear seat of his vehicle. The Spanish word “tomate,” which means tomato in English, was stamped on each bundle.
Gomez-Garcia admitted that during or after December 2021, he worked to bring drugs into the United States and took large amounts of cash from drug proceeds to Mexico for a drug trafficking organization in Mexico. He also admitted that at the time of his arrest, he was on his way to Chicago to pick up $3 million for the organization.
Gomez-Garcia will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Homero Ramirez and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Samara Sweet of the Southern District of Texas prosecuted the case.
For additional information about HSI’s investigative efforts, follow @HSI_SanAntonio.
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 more than 8,700 employees consists of more than 6,000 special agents assigned to 237 cities throughout the United States, and 93 overseas locations in 56 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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