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Man elected mayor in Mexico gets 21 years in prison for operating drug ring out of Tucson

Rebecca Smouse, The Republic | azcentral.com 8:52 p.m. MST March 9, 2016

A former mayor in Mexico was sentenced to more than 21 years in prison after pleading guilty to operating a drug-trafficking ring in southern Arizona.

Arturo Reyes Trujillo, 43, was sentenced Monday to 262 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Neil V. Wake, according to a release from the U.S. District Attorney's Office. Trujillo was elected municipal president in Fronteras, Sonora, in 2012.

“The lengthy sentence in this case reflects our office’s commitment to aggressively prosecute cross-border drug trafficking,” Acting U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Strange said in the news release.

Trujillo pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and conspiracy to commit money laundering. In the plea agreement, Trujillo admitted to heading a drug-trafficking organization out of Tucson.

Trujillo was responsible for distributing roughly 1,000 kilograms of cocaine throughout the U.S. from Jan. 1, 2003, to July 28, 2007, through his organization, prosecutors said. It used passenger cars and tractor-trailer trucks to move the drugs, officials said. Law enforcement seized 77 kilograms of cocaine and more than $490,000 in proceeds after drug ring was shut down.

Trujillo also pleaded guilty to laundering approximately $20 million.

It was unclear when Trujillo left the United States and moved to Mexico, where he subsequently took office.

Trujillo was indicted in November 2008 but did not appear in court until November 2014, when he pleaded guilty to the charges, according to court records.

The investigation was conducted by agencies participating in the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, including the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Internal Revenue Service criminal investigation division. The government of Mexico assisted with Trujillo's extradition.