Mexican Man Pleads Guilty To Role In Drug Trafficking Organization
Sunday, April 13, 2025, 7:00 A.M. ET. 1 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
MARTINSBURG, W.VA.- On Thursday, a 31-year-old Mexican national will be facing over a decade in federal prison after pleading guilty to his role in a large-scale drug trafficking organization that distributed kilogram quantities of heroin and fentanyl throughout the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Randolph J. Bernard, on Thursday, April 10, 2025, Jose Alberto Camerena Rocha, 31, of Mexico, illegally residing in California, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble to Conspiring to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute One Kilogram or More of Heroin; and Illegal Reentry into the United States by a Previously Deported Alien.
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Rocha Facing Up To 10 Years In Federal Prison
Following entering his guilty plea on Thursday, Judge Trumble scheduled sentencing at a time and date to be determined by the District Court. When sentenced, Rocha faces up to 10 years in federal prison on the narcotics conspiracy charge and an additional two years on the illegal reentry charge. At sentencing, a U.S. District Court Judge will determine the term of imprisonment based on the seriousness of the offenses and Rocha’s prior criminal history.
According to charging documents filed with the District Court and statements made during Thursday’s plea hearing, Rocha, illegally residing in California, used his connections with the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico to supply controlled substances to the Eastern Panhandle drug trafficking organization.
Upon receiving the shipments, other individuals of the drug trafficking organization would then sell the quantities of cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl throughout Berkeley and Jefferson Counties in West Virginia.
The case was brought as part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative launched by the U.S. Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect communities from perpetrators of violent crime.
