Two Men Sentenced for Smuggling $4.6 Million in Cocaine

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - Two San Antonio residents have been ordered to federal prison following their convictions of smuggling 59 kilograms of cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Darin Josep Fox, 24, and Jacob Escalante, 25, pleaded guilty Oct. 31, 2016, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.

Today, Senior U.S. District Judge Hayden Head ordered both Fox and Escalante to each serve 120 months in federal prison immediately be followed by five years of supervised release. In handing down the sentence, Judge Head noted that the amount of cocaine seized in this case would have had a significant impact and harm on the community.

On June 13, 2016, Fox was driving a Kenworth Tractor with Escalante as passenger. They were towing a flatbed trailer into the Sarita checkpoint on Highway 77 for primary inspection, at which time a service K9 alerted to the presence of contraband. Upon examination, agents discovered and removed 59 square bundles wrapped in black tape containing cocaine from a void located between the frame rails. The cocaine had a total weight of 59 kilograms with an estimated value of approximately $4.6 million.

Fox and Escalante will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The Drug Enforcement Administration and Border Patrol conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Watt is prosecuting the case.