ECUADORIAN MAN SENTENCED IN COCAINE TRAFFICKING CASE

St. Croix, VI – United States Attorney Delia L. Smith announced today that Carlos Benitez Estupinan, 30, of Ecuador, was sentenced by District Judge Wilma A. Lewis to 57 months incarceration, followed by two years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment, on his Conspiracy to Possess a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute While on Board a Vessel Subject to the Jurisdiction of the United States.

According to court documents, on November 15, 2021, while on routine patrol in the eastern Pacific Ocean, a maritime patrol aircraft detected a low-profile vessel traveling at approximately 77 nautical miles north of the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador. The United States Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton later intercepted the 52’ vessel which had no flag flown, no registration numbers, and no name painted on the hull. Four individuals, including Estupinan, were found on board the vessel, and neither individual claimed nationality for the vessel, subjecting the vessel to the jurisdiction of the United States. Coast Guard officers recovered 43 bales which contained 1,298 kilograms of cocaine from the vessel.

This case was investigated by the United States Coast Guard, Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Daniel H. Huston. This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.