The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico announced on Aug. 5 a series of convictions and sentencings resulting from Homeland Security Task Force prosecutions during the week of July 27 through July 31, 2026.
According to the office, Junior Alcántara-Escoboso pleaded guilty on July 29 to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes. Estefanny Parra-Rosa also pleaded guilty that day to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances. Both were arrested on July 10, 2025, and are scheduled for sentencing in late October. Emanuel Antigua Evangelista pleaded guilty on July 29 to reentry after removal following a felony conviction; his sentencing is set for September. Bryan Abdiel Camarena-Rodríguez pleaded guilty on July 30 to similar drug-related charges, with sentencing scheduled for October as well.
On the sentencing side, Augusto Quilarte-Brito received a sentence of 34 months imprisonment from Judge Silvia Carreño-Coll for conspiring to import more than five kilograms of cocaine into the United States and related offenses. He was indicted in March 2025 and pleaded guilty earlier this year. Luis Natanael Hernández-Corporán was sentenced by Judge Carreño-Coll to 27 months imprisonment for aiding entry of an aggravated felon; he had been indicted last September.
These cases fall under the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is described as a permanent interagency law enforcement task force targeting transnational criminal organizations such as cartels, trafficking networks, foreign terrorist organizations, and human smuggling rings operating within or affecting the United States. The task force places special emphasis on crimes involving children and uses available legal tools against violent criminal aliens.
The HSTF San Juan includes federal partners such as FBI, ICE-HSI, Customs and Border Protection components (OFO, AMO, Border Patrol), U.S. Marshals Service for Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), U.S. Coast Guard entities including its Investigative Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Department of State agencies including Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), Secret Service; regional HIDTA programs; Transportation Security Administration (TSA); Federal Aviation Administration (FAA); plus local offices from both Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands districts.
State-level partners include police departments from several municipalities across Puerto Rico along with National Guard units focused on counter-drug operations; other agencies include corrections authorities and port authorities from both territories involved in joint operations under HSTF oversight.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico supports public safety by handling federal crimes including civil rights violations, enforces federal laws through criminal prosecutions and civil litigation, serves all areas within its district, offers mechanisms for reporting crime or fraud, and operates across multiple domains such as public corruption or drug trafficking cases according to the official website.