Sinaloa Cartel Member Sentenced to Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Kill in a Foreign Country

In El Paso, 34-year-old Francisco Javier Pulido was sentenced yesterday to 24 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine for the death of a Horizon City, TX, resident in September 2009 announced United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Douglas E. Lindquist, El Paso Division, and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Will Glaspy, El Paso Division.

On October 26, 2016, Pulido pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to kill, kidnap or injure in a foreign country. By pleading guilty, Pulido admitted to conspiring with others in the kidnapping and murder of Sergio Saucedo from his home in Horizon City on September 3, 2009. The kidnapers took Saucedo to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, where he was murdered and mutilated in retaliation for the loss of a 670-pound marijuana load seized by authorities at the Sierra Blanca checkpoint.

With this sentencing, this investigation has resulted in federal convictions and prison sentences for five individuals in connection with the Saucedo kidnapping and murder. Rafael Vega and Cesar Obregon-Reyes each received life imprisonment; Cesar Pineda received 20 years imprisonment; and, Omar Obregon-Ortiz received 100 months imprisonment.

This case was investigated by agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Border Patrol, El Paso County Sheriff’s Department and the El Paso County District Attorney’s office.