Mission Texas Man Sentenced To Consecutive Prison Terms For Narcotics

Friday, September 27, 2024, 4:15 P.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,

MCALLEN, TX.- On Monday, September 23, 2024, Esteban Almentor-Lopez, 31, of Mission, Texas, appeared in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas and was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Court Judge to 120 months in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release for his convictions of two counts of Possession with Intent to Distribute More than 500 Grams of Methamphetamine.

     According to U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani, Almentor-Lopez was charged with two separate federal narcotics violations and pleaded guilty to the charges on March 1, 2021, and December 20, 2022.

Judge Orders Consecutive Sentences

     On Monday, Judge Crane ordered Almentor-Lopez to serve 70 months for the March 2021 guilty plea and 50 months consecutively for the December 2022 guilty plea, for a total term of 10 years in federal prison.

     According to documents filed with the court, in November 2020, law enforcement conducted an operation involving communication with a Mexican drug source organization. The organization was to deliver multi-kilograms of methamphetamine into the Rio Grande Valley, ultimately to be transported to Chicago, Illinois.

Two Separate Arrests

     On two occasions in November 2020, Almentor-Lopez transported a total of 40 kilograms of methamphetamine in Mission, Texas. He was arrested, but the court granted him bond pending future federal court proceedings. On March 1, 2021, Almentor-Lopez appeared in U.S. District Court and pleaded guilty to the charge.

     The following day, on March 2, 2021, federal agents again arrested him for transporting and delivering an additional 20 kilograms of methamphetamine for the same drug organization. A subsequent analysis of the approximate 60 kilograms of methamphetamine that Almentor-Lopez was transporting revealed a purity level of 100%.