Tampa, Florida - U.S. District Judge Mary Scriven today sentenced Mario Manzur Reyes (31, Tampa) and Santos Rene Herrera-Cruz (50, Tampa) for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Reyes was sentenced to five years and ten months in federal prison. Herrera-Cruz was sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment. Both pleaded guilty in September 2014.
According to court documents, Reyes oversaw the delivery of more than 16 pounds of highly pure methamphetamine from Laredo, Texas to the Tampa area. The methamphetamine had a street value of at least $250,000. Reyes, who was affiliated with a drug cartel operating out of Michoacán, Mexico, arranged for the drugs to be picked up on March 10, 2014, by one of his customers at a truck stop on U.S. 301. The customer, in turn, hired Herrera-Cruz to take possession of the shipment for him.
“Trafficking methamphetamine is a serious offense and a danger to our communities," said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations Tampa. “HSI, together with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners, is committed to combating the menace posed by illegal substances."
This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Scruggs.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
