Three Guatemalan nationals have been extradited to the United States to face drug trafficking charges in the Eastern District of Texas, according to U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.
The individuals, identified as Adelfo Federico Valdez Santos (also known as “Lico Valdez”), 43; Pedro Pablo Oliva Catalan (also known as “Peke” and “Peques”), 36; and Kelvin David Beron Ramirez (also known as “Catracho” and “Crunchi”), 37, were extradited from Guatemala on January 30, 2026. They were named in separate federal indictments filed in the Eastern District of Texas that charge them with drug trafficking offenses.
According to the indictments, Valdez, Oliva, and Beron are accused of conspiring with other international drug traffickers to manufacture, distribute, and transport large amounts of cocaine into the United States for further distribution.
These cases fall under the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative created by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a collaborative effort among various government agencies focused on dismantling criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling operations both inside and outside the United States. The task force emphasizes investigating crimes involving children and uses all available resources to prosecute violent criminal aliens.
If convicted, each defendant could face a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.
The investigation is being led by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Division with support from DEA offices in Guatemala City, Bogota, Cartagena, Panama City, and San Jose.
The Justice Department acknowledged assistance from Guatemalan authorities as well as its own Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Department of State, and the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala for their roles in securing the arrests and extraditions.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Rattan is prosecuting these cases.
“A federal indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”
