Two Mexican Gang Members Sentenced to Life

DEL RIO—Two members of the Los Zetas criminal organization in Mexico were both sentenced April 30 to life in federal prison for smuggling thousands of kilograms of marijuana and hundreds of assault rifles.

These sentences were announced by Acting U.S. Attorney, Richard L. Dubrin, Western District of Texas. This investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the FBI.

Emilio Villalobos-Alcala, 29, and Jose Eluid Lugo-Lopez, 27, both from Mexico, were sentenced April 30 to life imprisonment for the following convictions:  conspiracy to import marijuana, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and smuggling goods from the United States.

According to court documents, Villalobos-Alcala, a purported leader of the Los Zetas Cartel activities in Piedras Negras, Mexico, and fellow senior-level cartel member Lugo-Lopez, were involved in a large-scale marijuana and firearms smuggling scheme from July 2011 until February 2013. Assault weapons, other firearms, ammunition and magazines purchased in San Antonio were smuggled through Eagle Pass, Texas, to Piedras Negras inside hidden compartments in cars and trucks. Bundles of marijuana, smuggled across the river into Quemado, Texas, were transported to stash houses in Eagle Pass. From there, the marijuana was transported to stash houses in San Antonio and ultimately to distributors in Dallas and Houston.

Evidence presented during the trial included multiple threats made by Villalobos-Alcala and Lugo-Lopez.  They threatened that they would kill smugglers or their family members if they did not pay for drugs or weapons that were seized by law enforcement or agree to move drugs or weapons on behalf of the cartel.

“Operations such as these, which rely on intimidation and violence to accomplish their goals, represent the worst types of offenders. ATF is proud to be among the agencies responsible for taking down two key players in the Los Zetas Cartel,” said Robert Elder, ATF special agent in charge.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jay Hulings and Russell Leachman, Western District of Texas, prosecuted this case.