HARRISBURG, Pa. - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a 37-year-old Chicago resident pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani to participating in a drug conspiracy that was responsible for distributing heroin and other drugs during a four-year time period in Monroe, Montgomery, and Berks Counties in Pennsylvania.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the defendant, Gilberto Bautista-Ocampo, admitted to acting as a drug courier for the conspiracy and transporting seven kilograms of heroin from Chicago to Pennsylvania in February 2014.
The charge against Bautista-Ocampo resulted from an investigation by the Drug Enforcement (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, Berks County Detectives and Montgomery County Detectives.
Bautista-Ocampo faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million. Judge Mariani ordered a pre-sentence report to be completed. Sentencing is scheduled to take place in June 2015
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Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa is prosecuting the case. Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
