Colombian Drug Kingpin Sentenced to 31 Years in Prison for Drug Trafficking

Colombian drug kingpin Henry de Jesus Lopez Londoño was sentenced yesterday to 31 years in prison for importing multi-ton quantities of cocaine into the United States.  

Benjamin G. Greenberg, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Adolphus P. Wright, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, made the announcement.

A Miami jury had found Henry de Jesus Lopez Londoño, a/k/a “Mi Sangre,” 47, a citizen of Colombia, guilty of conspiring to distribute over five kilograms of cocaine with the knowledge that it would be unlawfully imported into the United States, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 959 and 963.  United States Senior District Judge Donald L. Graham sentenced the defendant to 372 months in prison, to be followed by 5 years of supervised release.

The evidence presented at the six week trial, which included the testimony of special agents from DEA, Homeland Security Investigations, the Internal Revenue Service, Argentinean National Police, and multiple co-conspirators, showed that the defendant in Colombia was a leader of the Urabeños, one of the largest and most dangerous drug cartels in the world.  As a leader, the defendant was part of a drug distribution chain spanning from Colombia to Central America, Mexico, and the United States.  The evidence at trial showed that as part of this conspiracy, the defendant was responsible for trafficking over 60,000 kilograms of cocaine.  The evidence at trial also revealed that at one point, Lopez Londoño attempted to cooperate with U.S. law enforcement.  However, when it was discovered that the defendant was lying and committing acts of violence, he became a target of investigation.  That trial evidence further showed that Lopez Londoño had engaged in unauthorized drug trafficking activities while attempting to cooperate.  

The prosecution was part of Operation Golden Eagle, which is a result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (“OCDETF”), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  The OCDETF mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute high-level members of drug trafficking enterprises, bringing together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement.

Mr. Greenberg commend the DEA Miami Field Division, DEA Bogota Country Office, DEA Buenos Aires Country Office, the Governments of Colombia and Argentina, the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs, the Office of the Judicial Attaché in Colombia, and the U.S. State Department for their assistance in this matter.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert J. Emery and Michael B. Nadler.   

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.