Cristian Fernando Gutiérrez-Ochoa, a high-ranking member of the Jalisco Nueva Generación cartel, was arrested in California on charges of international drug trafficking and money laundering, after faking his own death to evade justice.
One of the leaders of the dangerous Jalisco Nueva Generación cartel (CJNG) was arrested in California on charges of international drug trafficking and money laundering, after faking his own death to live in the United States with a false identity, the Department reported this Thursday. of Justice (DOJ).
U.S. agents arrested Mexican Cristian Fernando Gutiérrez-Ochoa, son-in-law of CJNG leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes alias El Mencho, accused of having personally coordinated the transportation and distribution of approximately 40,000 kilograms of methamphetamine and approximately 2,000 kilograms of cocaine in Mexico, all with destination to the US, says the DOJ statement.
“Over the last decade, Cristian Gutiérrez-Ochoa, a close associate of the top leader of the CJNG, allegedly directed the importation of tons of methamphetamine and cocaine into the United States and participated in acts of violence to aid the cartel's criminal activities,” said Principal Deputy Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department's Criminal Division.
If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison on the charge of conspiracy to distribute drugs, and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on the charge of conspiracy to money launder. . A federal district court will determine the sentence.
According to court documents, Gutiérrez-Ochoa, 37, allegedly began working for the CJNG, one of Mexico's most violent drug cartels, around 2014. In addition to directing drug trafficking and money laundering operations , allegedly kidnapped two members of the Mexican Navy in an attempt to achieve the release of El Mencho's wife, arrested by Mexican authorities.
After being sought by Mexican authorities, Gutiérrez-Ochoa fled to the United States aided by the CJNG leader, who apparently helped him in his plan to fake his own death, telling his associates that he murdered him for lying.
This support from El Mencho would have helped Gutiérrez-Ochoa to enter the United States irregularly, assume a fictitious identity and purchase a luxury residence in Riverside, California, purchased by CJNG money laundering agents with profits from drug trafficking.
The Department of Justice filed a superseding indictment against El Mencho in April 2022, charging him with leading an ongoing criminal enterprise to manufacture and distribute fentanyl for importation into the United States. The DOJ is also offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the CJNG leader, who remains at large.