A Mexican cartel member has been sentenced to 25 years in prison due to his involvement in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy that spread the drug across Minnesota. The arrest occurred when he was apprehended while crossing into Texas.
According to a news release on Wednesday from Lisa D. Kirkpatrick, the acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota, Charly Cruz-Jimenez, 40, will then be placed on five years of supervised release.
According to court documents, Cruz-Jimenez, a Mexican national, had previously been deported from the United States to Mexico in 2018. This deportation followed a six-year and two-month prison sentence handed down by the Hennepin County District Court in Minnesota. Cruz-Jimenez had been convicted of a first-degree controlled substance violation.
Cruz-Jimenez received his sentence on Tuesday in Minnesota’s U.S. District Court. Judge Eric C. Tostrud presided over the case and sentenced Cruz-Jimenez on a single count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
In October 2021, Cruz-Jimenez took charge of a drug trafficking organization that distributed methamphetamine in Minnesota and the surrounding area. He was based in Matamoros, Mexico, where he oversaw the operation.
According to law enforcement authorities, drug customers in the United States utilized electronic messaging applications to contact him and place orders for drugs.
Cruz-Jimenez, after receiving the orders, utilized a network of individuals within the United States to store the drugs, deliver them to customers, and subsequently transfer the money to Mexico.
According to court records, Cruz-Jimenez came under investigation when one of his customers, Nicholas Horak, was arrested.
According to a news release, it was found that Cruz-Jimenez had sold between 32 to 34 pounds of methamphetamine to Horak from October 2021 to March 2022.
Law enforcement obtained Cruz-Jimenez’s phone number from Horak’s phone and utilized it to connect him with an undercover police officer.
Over the course of the next 16 months, the undercover officer maintained contact with Cruz-Jimenez and placed 15 separate drug orders with him.
Cruz-Jimenez confessed to being a member of the Sureños, a prison gang with ties to organized crime in Mexico, according to authorities.
He also confessed to being a member of the Gulf Cartel, a notorious drug trafficking organization in Mexico, also known as the Cartel del Golfo or CDG, according to authorities.
Cruz-Jimenez sent the undercover officer photos of himself engaged in territory battles against the CJNG, showcasing his involvement in the conflict.
Cruz-Jimenez informed the undercover officer that he and his team had successfully apprehended the rival cartel member, who they considered to be their “enemy” and who was now providing a confession.
Cruz-Jimenez made an illegal reentry into the United States in August 2023 by crossing the Rio Grande into Texas, according to the news release.
Once he arrived in Texas, he engaged in ongoing discussions with the undercover officer about meth deals. He emphasized the need for an increase in drug orders in order to maintain their collaborative partnership.
After Cruz-Jimenez came back to the United States, law enforcement officials apprehended him based on the existing charges. Prior to being transported to Minnesota, he faced additional accusations and confessed to unlawfully reentering the United States in the Southern District of Texas, as stated by the U.S. Department of Justice.
The investigation into this case was carried out by multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, Ramsey County Violent Crime Enforcement Team, and the police departments of Maplewood, Mounds View, New Brighton, Roseville, Saint Paul, and White Bear Lake.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathan H. Nelson and Bradley M. Endicott for the District of Minnesota.