Edward H. Campbell (@EdwardHCampbell)

Homeland Security Task Force shuts down Mexican cocaine smuggling operation leading to 15 prison sentences KANSAS CITY, KAN. – The last of 15 defendants was sentenced to prison after a Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) investigation dismantled a Kansas City metro-based drug trafficking ring linked to Mexico. In December 2019, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) launched an investigation into a drug trafficking ring headed by Santiago Gamboa-Saenz. Gamboa-Saenz, 39, is an illegal alien from Chihuahua, Mexico. His network of traffickers smuggled cocaine from Mexico into the United States, which was then transported and distributed in Kansas City, Kansas, Kansas City, Missouri, Saint Louis, Chicago, the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, and Indiana. Through investigation, agents tied the criminal network to houses on West 98th Street in Overland Park and South Montebello in Olathe. They also determined a mechanic shop on Kaw Drive in Kansas City, Kansas, was being used to outfit vehicles with hidden compartments to transport drugs and drug money. Search warrants executed at these locations and others resulted in the seizure of over $733,000 and over 18.0 net kilograms of cocaine. Vehicle stops led to the discovery of hidden compartments with $533,780 in cash, more than 12.0 net kilograms of cocaine, drug paraphernalia, and many drug ledgers. The drug ledgers alone document drug proceeds from cocaine sales in the amount of $48,783,269. The drug trafficking organization sold cocaine to its customers for $29,000 to $36,000 per kilogram. “What may look like legitimate businesses from the outside can sometimes be criminal operations. These smugglers used a mechanic shop as a front in attempt to fly under the radar of law enforcement,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser. “They used the space to custom outfit vehicles with hidden compartments allowing them to move large amounts of illegal narcotics and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash at a time.” https://www.justice.gov/usao-ks/pr/homeland-security-task-force-shuts-down-mexican-cocaine-smuggling-operation-leading-15 #News #US #Kansas #Mexico #Border #Crime #Illegals #Narcotrafficking