Mexican Drug Dealer Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison

Baltimore, Maryland - U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Luis Jauregui-Madriz, age 25, a Mexican national residing in Alexandria, Virginia, late yesterday to 11 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Ava Cooper-Davis of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; Howard County Police Chief William McMahon; Anne Arundel County Police Chief Larry W. Tolliver; and Colonel Marcus L. Brown, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police.

According to court documents and the evidence presented at Jauregui-Madriz’s 2 1/2 day trial, in early November 2010, law enforcement intercepted calls indicating that Jauregui-Madriz was conducting drug transactions with Gregory Horne and others. Intercepted calls revealed that Jauregui-Madriz also attempted to arrange to obtain significant quantities of cocaine from a source of supply in Mexico, a source of supply in Texas, and from another individual, who, according to Jauregui-Madriz, utilized couriers to transport drugs from Mexico to Virginia. Also, the evidence at sentencing showed that the conspiracy used couriers, and that Madriz and another individual had conversations regarding a courier who was sick. DEA in Virginia ultimately brought that courier to a hospital and 21 pellets containing over 200 grams of cocaine were removed from the courier’s intestines.

In early February 2011, calls were intercepted between Jauregui-Madriz and Gregory Horne in which they used coded language to discuss Horne’s purchase of 250 grams of cocaine for $8,000. On February 5, 2011, Jauregui-Madriz called Horne and arranged for the delivery of the drugs. Although Horne had initially agreed to purchase 250 grams of crack cocaine, Jauregui-Madriz advised Horne that he could only supply half that amount and Horne agreed to purchase the smaller amount.

The following day, Jauregui-Madriz and his father began driving from their home in Virginia to Horne’s shop in Glen Burnie, Maryland, where they had agreed to meet Horne to conduct the narcotics transaction. They were stopped en route by the Maryland State Police and during the stop, a Trooper seized a package containing approximately 131.5 grams of cocaine from Jauregui-Madriz.

After his arrest, Jauregui-Madriz falsely stated to law enforcement that he was driving to Arundel Mills Mall in order to deliver the package of drugs to an unknown person. In fact, phone calls that had previously been intercepted showed that Jauregui-Madriz was driving to Horne’s shop to deliver the drugs to Horne.

On June 29, 2012, Gregory David Horne, age 45, of Millersville, Maryland, was sentenced to 188 months in prison. Horne had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute powder and crack cocaine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the DEA, Howard County Police Department, Anne Arundel County Police Department and the Maryland State Police for their work in this investigation and thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Ayn Ducao, Joshua Kaul and John Purcell, who prosecuted the case.