47-Year-Old El Paso Commercial Truck Driver Pleads Guilty To Transporting Cocaine In Ohio

Wednesday, August 14, 2024, 9:30 A.M. ET. 1 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,

YOUNGSTOWN, OH.- On Tuesday, August 13, 2024, Javier Eduardo Gutierrez-Quintana, 47, of El Paso, Texas, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio and entered a guilty plea to Possession of 20 Kilograms of Cocaine with the Intent to Distribute.

     According to documents filed with the court on May 31, 2024, Ohio State Patrol Officers encountered Gutierrez-Quintana, who was driving a commercial truck bearing a Texas license plate and registration. During a motor vehicle stop, a second Ohio State Patrol Officer deployed a K-9 near Gutierrez-Quintana’s truck, and during the deployment, the K-9 reacted positively to narcotics.

     Following the positive hit, Gutierrez-Quintana consented to a search of the truck. During the search, Patrol Officers found three black duffel bags containing 20 blue-taped packages of cocaine. Upon the discovery, Gutierrez-Quintana admitted to investigators that he knowingly transported 20 kilograms of cocaine from Texas to the Youngstown, Ohio, area, where he was scheduled to meet an unknown individual and deliver the packages.

     Gutierrez-Quintana’s sentencing is scheduled for November 22, 2024, in U.S. District Court. He will face a maximum of 20 years in federal prison, a period of supervised release, and monetary penalties and fines.