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The former Mexican law enforcement official residing in Brownsville who was convicted of smuggling narcotics into the U.S. was sentenced Wednesday, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District Court of Texas.
Gilberto Almaraz-Muniz, 56, was convicted in April on one count of conspiracy and three counts of possession with intent to distribute various controlled substances, such as cocaine, heroin and fentanyl.
Almaraz-Muniz was sentenced to over 20 years in federal prison following a five-day trial.
“At the hearing, the court heard additional information detailing the extensive elements of the conspiracy Almaraz-Muniz led,” the release said. “In handing down the sentence, the court noted Almaraz-Muniz specifically made use of younger individuals to carry out the transportation of the drugs.”
On March 10, 2022, law enforcement arrested 24-year-old co-conspirator Pedro Venegas after agents with the Kleberg County District Attorney’s Task Force conducted a traffic stop where they discovered over 26 pounds of narcotics hidden inside his vehicle, according to court documents.
During questioning on a later date, Venegas said he was involved in smuggling drugs from Mexico into the U.S. with Almaraz-Muniz, also known as “Primo,” and another man named Jetzrael “Jetz” Saldana, 26, since January 2022.
He stated that Saldana introduced Venegas to Almaraz-Muniz in order to be recruited as a driver. Saldana told Venegas that Almaraz-Muniz was the “boss.” Venegas also said Saldana would recruit drivers and follow the drug loads to Houston, for which he’d be paid $500 per trip north.
Venegas added that the truck he was driving during the March 10 bust was picked up at Almaraz-Muniz’s house in Brownsville and that Almaraz-Muniz instructed him to take it to a certain parking lot in Houston with Saldana following.
“During this time, [Venegas] was in phone communication with both Almaraz-Muniz and Saldana,” the document said.
A search of his cellphone revealed numerous drug trafficking-related conversations with a contact under the name of “nose” (sic), which is Spanish for “don’t know,” but they were later identified as Saldana.
Saldana was saved on Venegas’ cellphone contact as “nose” in order to confuse law enforcement as to the contact’s true identity.
On April 13, 2022, Saldana was located by agents and questioned regarding the March 10 bust. It was then that he admitted to working under the direction of Almaraz-Muniz and corroborated Venegas’ statements.
Once arrested, Almaraz-Muniz was also questioned. He admitted to knowing both Venegas and Saldana and that they were arrested for drugs then added that “individuals in Mexico” asked him to “find a lawyer” for them, according to the document.
Almaraz-Muniz denied involvement with drug distribution and said he only sold cars. He said he sold a car to a person in Mexico and then followed three people in that car, which was loaded with drugs, as they traveled to Austin where he would then get paid for the sale of the car.
According to the document, those people were later arrested for possession with the intent to distribute black tar heroin.
The jury heard of this seizure during the trial along with another seizure at the Gateway International Bridge in Brownsville, where law enforcement discovered about 183 pounds of liquid meth.
Almaraz-Muniz will remain in custody pending a transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility, which will be determined in the near future.
