Lorenzo Valerio-Popoca, a 31-year-old Mexican national, has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for his role in trafficking methamphetamine in the Tampa Bay area. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge William F. Jung after Valerio was found guilty by a jury on July 31, 2025. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Gregory Kehoe.
Valerio, who resided illegally in the United States, was indicted in 2019 for distributing methamphetamine within the Middle District of Florida. Evidence presented during the trial showed that between 2017 and 2018, he routinely received kilogram-quantities of methamphetamine from sources in Mexico and sold them in bulk to buyers in Manatee and Hillsborough Counties and other locations. Conspirators working with Valerio transported the drugs throughout the region to various buyers.
Court documents revealed that Valerio often arranged sales involving at least one to two kilograms of methamphetamine per transaction. In March 2018, a courier working for Valerio delivered two kilograms of methamphetamine to a buyer in Hillsborough County; law enforcement later seized these drugs.
After being indicted, Valerio left Florida and became a fugitive until his arrest in Pasadena, Texas, in 2022 for trafficking over ten kilograms of methamphetamine connected to his transnational criminal organization.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration (Tampa), local sheriff’s offices from Hillsborough, Manatee, and Pasco counties, as well as police departments from Clearwater and Pasadena (Texas). Additional support came from the DEA’s Asheville office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas. Assistant United States Attorney David Pardo prosecuted the case.
U.S. Attorney Gregory Kehoe stated: "This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime."
