WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� A close ally of fugitive boss known as 鈥淓l Mencho鈥� for years orchestrated a prolific drug trafficking operation, using a semi-submersible and other methods to avoid detection, and provided weapons to one of Mexico鈥檚 most powerful cartels, prosecutors say.
On Friday, Jos茅 Gonz谩lez Valencia, was sentenced in Washington鈥檚 federal court to 30 years in a U.S. prison following his 2017 arrest at a beach resort in Brazil while vacationing with his family under a fake name.
Gonz谩lez Valencia, 49, known as 鈥淐hepa,鈥� along with his two brothers, led a group called 鈥淟os Cuinis鈥� that financed the drug trafficking operations of Jalisco New Generation, or CJNG 鈥� the violent cartel recently . His brother-in-law is CJNG leader , whom for years has been sought by the U.S. government.
Meanwhile, El Mencho鈥檚 son-in-law, Cristian Fernando Guti茅rrez Ochoa, appeared in the same courtroom earlier Friday to plead guilty in a separate case to a money laundering conspiracy charge. Gutierrez Ochoa was arrested toward the end of the Biden administration last year in California, he was living under a bogus name after faking his own death and fleeing Mexico.
Together, the prosecutions reflect the U.S. government鈥檚 efforts to weaken the brutal Jalisco New Generation cartel that鈥檚 responsible for importing staggering amounts of cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl into the U.S. 鈥� and track down its elusive leader. The Trump administration on CJNG and other cartels with the foreign terrorist organization designation, which gives authorities new tools to prosecute those associated with cartels.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 totally prosecute your way out of the cartel problem, but you can make an actual impact by letting people know that we鈥檙e going to be enforcing this and showing that Mexico is being cooperative with us and then ultimately trying to get high level targets to sort of set the organization back,鈥� Matthew Galeotti, who lead the Justice Department鈥檚 criminal division, said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Trump鈥檚 Justice Department has declared dismantling CJNG and other cartels a top priority, and Galeotti said the U.S. in recent months has seen increased cooperation from Mexican officials. In February, 鈥� including drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero, who was 鈥� to the U.S. for prosecution.
The Trump administration has already charged a handful of defendants with terrorism offenses since designating CJNG and seven other Latin American crime organizations as foreign terrorist organizations in February. Galeotti said several additional indictments related to CJNG and other cartels remain under seal.
鈥淲e are taking a division-wide approach to this,鈥� Galeotti said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got money laundering prosecutors who are not just focused on the cartels themselves ... but also on financial facilitators. So when we鈥檙e taking this broad approach 鈥� that鈥檚 why I think we鈥檝e had some of the really significant cases that we鈥檝e had, and we鈥檝e seen a very significant pipeline.鈥�
Gonz谩lez Valencia pleaded guilty to international cocaine trafficking in 2022. Authorities say he went into hiding in Bolivia in 2015 after leading 鈥淟os Cuinis鈥� alongside his brothers for more than a decade. He was arrested in 2017 under the first Trump administration after traveling to Brazil, and was later extradited to the U.S.
鈥淟os Cuinis鈥� used 鈥渁ir, land, sea, and under-the-sea methods鈥� to smuggle drugs bound for the U.S., prosecutors say. In one instance, authorities say Gonz谩lez Valencia invested in a shipment of 4,000 kilograms of cocaine that was packed in a semi-submersible vessel to travel from Colombia to Guatemala. Other methods employed by 鈥淟os Cuinis鈥� include hiding drugs in frozen shark carcasses, prosecutors say. He鈥檚 also accused of directing the killing of a rival.
He appeared in court wearing an orange jumpsuit and listened to the hearing through an interpreter over headphones. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell sealed part of the hearing, keeping the press and public out of the courtroom while lawyers argued over the sentence. It was not clear why the judge determined it had to be sealed. Gonz谩lez Valencia鈥檚 lawyer declined to comment after the hearing.
In the other case, Guti茅rrez Ochoa was wanted in Mexico on allegations that he kidnapped two Mexican Navy members in 2021 in the hopes of securing the release of 鈥淓l Mencho鈥檚鈥� wife after she had been arrested by Mexican authorities, prosecutors have said. Authorities have said he faked his own death and fled to the U.S. to avoid Mexican authorities, and 鈥淓l Mencho鈥� told associates that he killed Guti茅rrez Ochoa for lying.
鈥淓l Mencho鈥檚鈥� son, Rub茅n Oseguera 鈥� known as 鈥淓l Menchito鈥� 鈥� was sentenced to March after his conviction in Washington鈥檚 federal court of conspiring to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine for U.S. importation and using a firearm in a drug conspiracy.
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Alanna Durkin Richer, The Associated Press
