Oscar Henao-Montoya, a Colombian national, has been sentenced to 24 years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States. The sentencing was announced by Matthew Podolsky, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Louis A. D’Ambrosio, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA's Special Operations Division. U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni handed down the sentence after Henao-Montoya pled guilty to one count of cocaine importation conspiracy.
Two co-conspirators, Rehinner Montoya-Garcia and Juan Felipe Santibanez-Cardona, also pled guilty and received sentences of 20 years and 15 years respectively from Judge Caproni.
Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky stated: “Oscar Henao-Montoya and his co-conspirators sought to send a staggering quantity of cocaine from Colombia to the United States. Today’s sentence, and those previously imposed in this case, send a clear message that those who seek to traffic cocaine into the United States will pay a steep price for their actions.”
Henao-Montoya is connected to international drug trafficking through familial ties. He is the younger brother of Orlando Henao-Montoya, also known as "El Hombre Overol," who led the Norte del Valle Cartel in Colombia during its peak in the late 1990s.
Between October 2020 and August 2021, Henao-Montoya held meetings with DEA confidential sources (CSes) in Colombia regarding plans to export large quantities of cocaine using airstrips and ports under his control. During these meetings, discussions included logistics involving corrupt members of the Colombian Air Force and routes for transporting drugs to New York.
The meetings also revealed that Henao-Montoya had access to cocaine laboratories capable of producing over one ton at a time. On one occasion, Montoya-Garcia took a CS to FARC-controlled territory where some laboratories were located.
To demonstrate product quality, samples were provided during these operations; Montoya-Garcia and Santibanez-Cardona supplied a one-kilogram sample which received positive feedback from CSes on its quality. Additionally, an eight-kilogram sample was exchanged with undercover agents for $16,000 as part of preparations for larger shipments.
In addition to his prison term, Henao-Montoya will serve four years of supervised release following his incarceration.
The prosecution acknowledged contributions from various law enforcement agencies including DEA’s Special Operations Division and Colombian National Police. The case is managed by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sam Adelsberg, Matthew J.C. Hellman, David J. Robles, and Chelsea L. Scism from the National Security and International Narcotics Unit.
