South Texas trucker on his way to prison for trafficking cocaine

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 37-year-old Alton resident has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction for conspiring to smuggle nearly 20 kilograms of cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.

Eddy Garcia-Abreu pleaded guilty July 30.

Today, U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos handed Garcia-Abreu a 120-month sentence to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release. In handing down the sentence, the court noted that at the time of the offense, Garcia-Abreu was still on supervised release from a prior alien smuggling conviction.

On May 19, authorities stopped Garcia-Abreu for a routine safety inspection. He immediately became nervous as they examined the tractor-trailer he was driving. They soon discovered a modification to the king pin area where the trailer was attached to the tractor and immediately called a K-9. It alerted to the vehicle. Law enforcement unhitched the trailer and found 20 bundles inside a hidden compartment containing 19.8 kilograms of cocaine.

The narcotics have an estimated street value of $500,000.

Garcia-Abreu has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with assistance from Texas Department of Public Safety. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel Dunn prosecuted the case.