PHOENIX (LAWFUEL) – Dagoberto Trevino-Quintero, 31, of Mexico, pleaded guilty to the indictment for heroin conspiracy and possession charges in federal district court in Phoenix on November 17, 2008. Sentencing is set before U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow on February 9, 2008.
Trevino-Quintero was charged with Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute One Kilogram or More of Heroin and Possession with Intent to Distribute One Kilogram or More of Heroin, stemming from a 9.533 kilogram heroin seizure in San Luis, Ariz. On January 31, 2008, he and two others crossed into the U.S. from Mexico and went to a pre-determined apartment in San Luis. At the apartment, Trevino-Quintero and four other individuals put on hiking boots that contained white heroin in the insoles of the boots. The heroin was initially destined for Phoenix and has an approximate street value of $38,000 per kilogram. All five were arrested with approximately 1.3 kilograms of heroin in each pair of their boots. Three additional pairs of boots containing 3.294 kilograms of white heroin were also found.
A conviction for Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute One Kilogram or More of heroin carries a maximum penalty of life in prison with a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison, a maximum $4,000,000 fine or both. In determining an actual sentence, Judge Snow will consult the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide appropriate sentencing ranges. The judge, however, is not bound by those guidelines in determining a sentence.
The investigation in this case was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the San Luis Police Department and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The prosecution is being handled by Lynne T. Ingram, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-08-0109-002-PHX-GMS
RELEASE NUMBER: 2008-306(Trevino-Quintero)
