By Gangsters Inc. Editors
The high-ranking member of a drug trafficking organization operating in New York and New Jersey was convicted on Thursday of conspiring to import 150 kilograms of cocaine into the United States. Vicente “El Bori” Esteves thought he had found a Colombian connection. In reality, he walked right into a trap.
49-year-old Esteves belonged to a drug trafficking organization that attempted to purchase 150 kilograms of cocaine from purported Colombian suppliers, who were in fact undercover law enforcement agents.
Suitcases stuffed with millions in cash
The organization negotiated for the delivery of the cocaine in Puerto Rico, with the delivery of the purchase money in the Bronx, New York. On December 4, 2020, the day of the exchange, Esteves and his crew members arrived in the Bronx to complete the transaction with two suitcases stuffed with more than $1.3 million cash, which was intended as a payment for part of the overall 150-kilogram transaction.
- READ: Profile of Dominican drug lord Cesar Emilio Peralta-Adamez, who allegedly ordered hit on Major League Baseball star David Ortiz
Esteves supervised the collection and delivery of the $1.3 million and carried a ledger for the transaction in his wallet. A third suitcase, containing over $644,000 in additional cash, was later recovered in a stash house that Esteves and coconspirators met at in preparation for the transaction.
Esteves was convicted on one count of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute at least five kilograms of cocaine, which carries a mandatory minimum prison term of ten years and a maximum prison term of life. He is scheduled to be sentenced on November 17, 2022.
“Esteves was a ‘boss’ of a drug trafficking crew that conspired to import 150 kilograms of cocaine into the United States,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said. “Today, Esteves’s drug trafficking operation has been disrupted, and he stands convicted of his crime and faces the possibility of a lengthy prison sentence.”
- Back to the Drug Cartels section on Gangsters Inc.
- Check out the latest news on organized crime and the Mafia at our news section
- Check out our social media channels
- About Gangsters Inc.
Copyright © Gangsters Inc.
Comments