South San Francisco Man Convicted Of Selling Methamphetamine

SAN FRANCISCO – On February 12, 2018, a federal jury convicted Jose Alejandro Vasquez Robledo of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and distribution of methamphetamine, announced Acting United States Attorney Alex G. Tse and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge Jill Snyder. The guilty verdict followed a three-day jury trial before the Honorable Vince Chhabria, U.S. District Judge.

Evidence at trial showed that on November 16 and 17, 2015, Robledo, 32, of South San Francisco, and a co-defendant sold two ounces of methamphetamine in South San Francisco.  At trial, the jury saw video and audio recordings from the drug transaction as captured by the ATF, as well as audio recordings of the phone conversations that led up to the deal.  A federal grand jury indicted Robledo and his co-defendant on July 18, 2017, charging each with one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)(viii), and one count of distribution of methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)(viii).   

The investigation that led to the prosecution of the defendants was part of a larger ATF operation targeting criminal activity in the area of South San Francisco where the drug deal occurred. 

Judge Chhabria ordered Robledo remanded to federal custody pending his sentencing hearing, which is scheduled for May 15, 2018.  The counts of conviction carry a statutory mandatory minimum sentence of five years’ imprisonment, a statutory maximum sentence of 40 years’ imprisonment, and a maximum fine of $5,000,000 for each count.  However, any sentence will be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553. 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julie Garcia and Randall Leonard are prosecuting the case, with the assistance of Alycee Lane and Tong Zhang.  The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the ATF.