A Mexican national, Anastacio Santiago Chaparro, also known as Arnoldo Urquidez, has been sentenced to 110 months in prison for cocaine trafficking and illegal reentry into the United States. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Alina Habba.
Santiago Chaparro, aged 41, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine and illegal reentry by a convicted felon before U.S. District Judge Edward S. Kiel in Camden federal court.
Court documents reveal that on November 6, 2023, Santiago Chaparro was apprehended while transporting a backpack containing over 10 kilograms of cocaine. He admitted the drugs were meant for distribution. Santiago Chaparro had previously been deported from the U.S. three times and had an aggravated felony conviction for being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm.
In addition to his prison sentence, Judge Kiel imposed three years of supervised release on Santiago Chaparro and ordered him to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement regarding deportation proceedings.
The investigation involved special agents from Homeland Security Investigations Newark under Special Agent in Charge Ricky Patel's direction and the Drug Enforcement Administration New York under Special Agent in Charge Frank A. Tarentino's leadership.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Chana Y. Zuckier of the Bank Integrity, Money Laundering and Recovery Unit in Newark represented the government in this case.
Defense counsel for Santiago Chaparro was Victor A. Afanador.