The man who led the Gulf Cartel during its violent war with the Los Zetas Cartel has been sentenced to life in prison.
U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr. handed down the sentence for 51-year-old Jorge Costilla-Sanchez, who pleaded guilty to drug trafficking in January 2020, in Brownsville federal court on Thursday.
A grand jury indicted Costilla-Sanchez, also known as “El Coss,” on May 7, 2012, and in September of that year, the Mexican government arrested him. He was extradited to the United States three years later.
The indictment against Costilla-Sanchez named 26 defendants, including a who’s who of Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas members like Antonio Ezequiel Cardenas-Guillen, also known as “Tony Tormenta.”
He was the co-leader of the Gulf Cartel until he was killed in a gun battle with the Mexican Navy in Matamoros in November 2010.
The indictment also named Heriberto Lazcano-Lazcano, who led Los Zetas following their split with the Gulf Cartel in 2010 that ushered in a bloody war in Tamaulipas as both cartels vied for control of the state to smuggle drugs into the United States.
Lazcano-Lazcano was killed in a shootout with the Mexican Navy in 2012.
In a news release issued Thursday, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas said Costilla Sanchez, who led the Gulf Cartel from 2003 to 2012, was responsible for smuggling 22,046 pounds of cocaine and 308,647 pounds of marijuana into the United States.
During the sentencing, Rodriguez, the federal judge, learned Costilla-Sanchez profited $5 million from drug trafficking and he entered a $5 million money judgment against him.
“The court commented that during the 10 years Costilla-Sanchez was the head of the CDG, he lead (sic) a violent criminal organization, using guns and intimidation to maintain control of their illegal drug trafficking enterprise and resorting to violence and killing to maintain power,” the news release stated.
Costilla-Sanchez initially took control of the Gulf Cartel following the arrest of its former leader, Osiel Cardenas, who is serving 25 years in federal prison.
Cardenas, who recruited military deserters to form Los Zetas as the Gulf Cartel’s military wing, is scheduled to be released from federal prison on Aug. 30, 2024. He will be deported upon release.
Prior to taking over the Gulf Cartel along with Cardenas-Guillen, Cardenas’ brother, Costilla-Sanchez was a municipal police officer in Matamoros.
The press release also notes that in 1999 Costilla-Sanchez pleaded guilty to threatening two FBI agents while he was being investigated for drug trafficking in 1999.
In the news release, Homeland Security Investigations – San Antonio acting Special Agent Craig Larrabee said the sentence is the culmination of years of relentless work from HSI and its partners in targeting the Gulf Cartel.
“This investigation highlights HSI’s dedication to go after cartel members importing dangerous drugs into our communities,” Larambee said. “This sentence will send a resounding message that transnational criminal organizations are being continuously investigated and their leaders will be brought to justice.”
Daniel C. Comeaux, special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Houston Division, said the sentencing shows high-ranking drug trafficking leaders are not immune from stiff punishments.
“Costilla-Sanchez brought poison to our communities, and our collaborative efforts with our local and federal partners brought him to prison,” Comeaux said. “We will continue to aggressively go after any drug trafficking organization wanting to profit from our communities.”
Oliver E. Rich Jr., FBI special agent in charge, said the sentence sends a clear message to drug trafficking organizations that threats against law enforcement won’t be tolerated.
“The FBI continues to work alongside our partners to pursue and prosecute the leadership of drug trafficking cartels and dismantle their organizations,” Rich said. “We thank the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force … for their collective efforts to bring this high-level criminal to justice.”
Costilla-Sanchez has remained in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
