A Mexican woman living in Houston will spend 17 years and six months in federal prison after being convicted of conspiracy to import and possession with intent to deliver methamphetamine, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.
Ana Maria Pena-Gutierrez, 55, was convicted after a two-day trial in Laredo, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas Alamdar S. Hamdani said Thursday. A federal jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning the guilty verdict Feb. 8, 2023.
U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña sentenced Pena-Gutierrez to prison. Once she is released, she will be on five years of supervised release.
“Pena-Gutierrez and others like her who poison our communities with drugs and jeopardize the lives of countless persons of all ages deserve to be found and prosecuted without hesitation,” Hamdani said. “That continues to be my commitment to our communities, our people and our youth.”
Authorities said that between Dec. 13, 2020, and June 14, 2022, Pena-Gutierrez and others conspired to import almost 60 kilograms, or 132 pounds, of meth. Officials say she organized transportation of the drug by providing vehicles to load drivers and paying the drivers.
During her trial, coconspirator Mike Mendoza testified Pena-Gutierrez hired him and paid him to drive vehicles to smuggle drugs from Mexico into the United States several times from Jan. 10, 2021, through Feb. 25, 2021.
Mendoza was arrested Feb. 25, 2021, as he drove a pickup into Laredo with 24 bundles of meth hidden in the tires. The total weight of the drug was 56.232 kilograms, or around 124 pounds. Testimony at the trial said the drugs had an approximate street value of $451,244.
Mendoza admitted he successfully made two previous trips from Mexico, as directed by Pena-Gutierrez. However, an investigation found he had made four previous trips from Mexico in a sedan.
Mendoza testified Pena-Gutierrez paid him $5,000 for each of the two previous smuggling trips and promised to pay him $9,000 when he was arrested. He said she also fronted him $500 for travel expenses.
Authorities arrested another coconspirator, Erik Alonso Martinez, on April 23, 2021, as he entered Laredo with 52.28 kilograms, or around 115 pounds, of meth in the sedan’s fuel tank with a net weight of 25.04 kilograms, or 55 pounds. It had an approximate street value of $200,938, officials said.
Martinez told law enforcement in an interview that he picked up the car in Houston from someone he declined to identify. An investigation later revealed Pena-Gutierrez provided the sedan to Martinez.
After her arrest Aug. 10, 2021, Pena-Gutierrez said others paid her to recruit Mendoza and Martinez. She also told authorities she received about $4,000 for each successful drug trip and paid each driver between $7,000 and $8,000 per trip.
At the trial, evidence was presented that included charts of 350 phone calls and text messages between Pena-Gutierrez and Mendoza about the price of meth. The messages said the price for the drug increases as one travels further north from the border.
During the trial, the jury heard an expert in financial records describe the irregularities of Pena-Gutierrez’s bank activities. Her confession and the conspiracy also were described by authorities.
Mendoza received seven years in federal prison and Martinez was sentenced to 174 days for their roles in the smuggling organization.
Pena-Gutierrez will remain in custody as she awaits transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility.
Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case with help from Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jose Homero Ramirez prosecuted the case. Former Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Isaac and José Angel Moreno tried the case before the jury.
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