Illegal Alien Sentenced to 10 Years for Trafficking Multiple Kilos of Meth into North Mississippi

ABERDEEN, MS– Arturo Bonilla, 48, of Mexico, was sentenced today in federal court to ten years in prison for drug trafficking.

According to documents and evidence presented in court, in 2021, officers with the Tishomingo County Sheriff’s Department and Mississippi Highway Patrol conducted traffic stops of Bonilla and found him in possession of methamphetamine. Agents with the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) began investigating Bonilla’s role in drug distribution and determined he was responsible for the trafficking of at least six kilograms into the State of Mississippi.

HSI also determined that Bonilla was illegally present in the United States.

Senior U.S. District Court Judge Sharion Aycock sentenced Bonilla to 120 months imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release in the event that he remains in the country.

However, officials with Immigration and Customs Enforcement have placed an immigration detainer on the defendant, to result in his removal from the United States following the conclusion of his federal sentence.

“The defendant in this case, who never should have been in this country to commit these crimes in the first place, imported poison into our community and has now been held to account for that conduct,” said U.S. Attorney Scott F. Leary. “Our law enforcement partners did incredible work on this case and provided the level of cooperation that our citizens should expect.”

“This sentence sends a clear message that those who traffic dangerous drugs into our communities will be held accountable. Homeland Security Investigations remains committed to dismantling transnational criminal organizations and protecting the citizens of Mississippi,” said HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge Matt Wright. “We will continue to work with our state and local partners to pursue those who threaten our communities with illegal narcotics and ensure they face justice.”

This case was investigated by HSI, with assistance from the Tishomingo County Sheriff’s Office and Mississippi Highway Patrol.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Addison prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/​1393746/dl?inline) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).