Leader of Methamphetamine Ring Sentenced to 11 Years in Federal Prison
Las Vegas, Nev. – A man considered to be the leader of a group of individuals who were trafficking methamphetamine in Las Vegas and Montana, has been sentenced to just over 11 years in federal prison (135 months) and five years of supervised release for his guilty plea to federal drug conspiracy charges, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.
Jesus Guadalupe Felix Burgos, 26, a citizen of Mexico who was residing in Las Vegas at the time of the offense, was sentenced on Tuesday, May 29, 2012, by U.S. District Judge James C. Mahan. Burgos pleaded guilty in February 2012, to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Judge Mahan determined that Burgos was a leader and organizer of the conspiracy because he hired drug couriers to transport the methamphetamine across state lines, and to rent vehicles and provide translation services. Nine others, Angel G. Aguilar, Lee Novarro, Christopher Fraijo, Daniel Rizo, John Asher, Nancy Mageno, Ruben Aguilar, Francisco Flores-Jorge, and Danya Maycotte, were also charged in the conspiracy. Eight pleaded guilty, and a federal jury convicted Mageno, who translated for Burgos, on May 23, 2012, for conspiring to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine.
According to the court filings, during the fall of 2009, an FBI-led task force in Billings, Montana, began an investigation of co-defendant Francisco Flores-Jorge and others, who were believed to be distributing near-pure grade methamphetamine in the Billings area and onto at least two Indian reservations in Montana. The investigators soon learned that Flores-Jorge and his crew operated primarily out of Las Vegas, and that Burgos was the primary source for the methamphetamine. Throughout the course of the investigation, the FBI conducted numerous undercover drug buys from members of the conspiracy, purchasing a total of about two pounds of actual methamphetamine, also referred to as "Ice." Some of the methamphetamine was packaged inside hand-held vacuum cleaners and shipped from Las Vegas to Billings, and two half-pound transactions were executed in Las Vegas in August and October 2010. Burgos was found responsible for distributing 362 grams of methamphetamine.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen Bliss and Trial Attorney Kevin L. Rosenberg of the U.S. Department of Justice Organized Crime and Gang Section. It was investigated by the FBI and the DEA.
