Two Colombian nationals, Jorge Hernan Gonzalez-Ortiz (50) and Carlos Andres Aldana-Gil (43), have pleaded guilty to conspiring to import cocaine into the United States, as announced by United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg. Both individuals could potentially face a life sentence in federal prison. However, a specific date for their sentencing has not been determined yet.
From 2016 until 2023, Gonzalez-Ortiz was the mastermind behind a drug trafficking organization in Colombia. Their main operation involved transporting cocaine using commercial airplanes. The conspirators would conceal the cocaine in boxes of fruit and load them onto commercial aircraft at Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Cali, Colombia. The intended destination was Gustavo Rojas Pinilla International Airport in San Andrés Island, Colombia. Corrupt Colombian police officers aided the conspirators in unloading the cocaine and smuggling it by boat to either Nicaragua or Honduras. From there, the illicit substance would make its way to Mexico and eventually the United States.
Between 2016 and 2023, Gonzalez-Ortiz managed to smuggle a staggering amount of cocaine onto a minimum of 27 commercial flights in Cali, reaching a total of at least 43,000 kilograms.
From 2021 to 2023, Aldana-Gil actively participated in Gonzalez-Ortiz’s smuggling operation by handling all the logistical aspects. He was responsible for receiving truckloads of cocaine from other conspirators, transporting the drugs to the airport, and even bribing an airport security supervisor to divert the security cameras’ attention away from the airport’s external gates. Additionally, he played a crucial role in hiring and compensating the conspirators in charge of altering the cargo manifests and the luggage cart drivers who loaded the drugs onto commercial aircraft. Unfortunately, on July 29, 2023, the Colombian National Police intercepted one of the organization’s cocaine shipments after it had been unloaded from a commercial aircraft on San Andrés Island.
This prosecution is a component of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative. The initiative establishes permanent multi-agency task force teams that work together in the same location. This co-located model facilitates collaboration between agents from various agencies, enabling them to conduct intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations. The primary objective is to disrupt and dismantle major drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations.
The OCDETF Panama Express Strike Force has a clear objective: to disrupt and dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations engaged in extensive drug trafficking, money laundering, and associated illicit activities. This dedicated force is made up of highly skilled agents and officers from the Coast Guard Investigative Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations. Leading the prosecution efforts is the Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida.
The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, the Colombian National Police’s Dirreccion de Antinarcotics (DIRAN), and the Colombian Equipo de Trabajo Investigativo Control Aeronaves (ETICA) played a crucial role in providing assistance. Assistant United States Attorney David J. Pardo is responsible for prosecuting this case.