El Paso Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for the Distribution of Over 700 Kilograms of Cocaine and Laundering Almost $8 Million in Drug Proceeds

In El Paso today, 44-year-old Juan Manuel Flores (aka “Cholo”), the leader of an El Paso-based cocaine trafficking and money laundering organization, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison, announced Acting United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Will R. Glaspy, El Paso Division, and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge William Cotter.

In addition to the prison term, United States District Judge David C. Guaderrama ordered that Flores be placed on supervised release for five years after completing his prison term.  Furthermore, the court ordered forfeiture of the defendant’s interest in five real properties in El Paso County, Texas, as proceeds of the drug conspiracy.

On February 3, 2015, Flores pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to deliver cocaine, and one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.  By pleading guilty, the defendant admitted to trafficking cocaine in the Western District of Texas between 2005 and July 2013.  According to court records, Flores conspired to distribute over 700 kilograms of cocaine in the El Paso area and conspired to launder over $7.9 Million in drug proceeds.

“Juan Manuel Flores was a significant drug trafficker living and working in El Paso. With Flores’ crimes extending back at least a decade, supported by his ties to the Vicente Carrillo Fuentes cartel, today’s sentencing is the culmination of a long and complex investigation that has made the city of El Paso safer,” stated DEA Special Agent in Charge Will R. Glaspy.

This joint investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), together with the United States Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection Internal Affairs (DHS-CBP), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), El Paso Police Department, and the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.