Out of state trucker ordered to prison for carrying cocaine following HSI, federal partner investigation
BROWNSVILLE, Texas — An Arkansas man was sentenced to over seven years in prison for trafficking 75 kilograms of cocaine following a collaborative investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and U.S. Border Patrol.
Legusta Juaquim Rodan, 54, of De Valls Bluff, Arkansas, pleaded guilty Aug. 1, and was sentenced Nov. 8, by a federal judge to serve up to 87 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release. In handing down the sentence, the court noted that Rodan engaged in a pattern of conduct in narcotics trafficking as opposed to being caught up in a one-time event.
“As a consequence of his drug trafficking activity, this defendant will spend more than seven years in federal prison,” said HSI San Antonio’s Acting Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee. “HSI will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to protect our communities and bring drug smugglers to justice.”
According to court documents, law enforcement officials inspected Rodan’s vehicle at the Falfurrias Border Patrol checkpoint on Sept. 10, 2020. At that time, they discovered 75.5 kilograms of cocaine and 400 kilograms of marijuana in his tractor-trailer. The trailer contained wooden pallets full of cartons of raspberries. After a K-9 alerted to a drug scent, authorities found 43 bundles of drugs hidden below the pallets.
Rodan remains in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility.
Assistant U.S. Attorney David A. Lindenmuth, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted the case.
HSI is a directorate of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security 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 6,800 special agents assigned to 225 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.
For additional information about HSI’s investigative efforts, follow @HSI_SanAntonio.
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