Texas Border Business
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Texas
McALLEN, Texas – A 31-year-old Mission man has been ordered to federal prison following his convictions of two counts of possession with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of meth, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Esteban Almentor-Lopez faced two separate narcotics charges and pleaded guilty March 1, 2021, and Dec. 20, 2022.
Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane has now ordered Almentor-Lopez to serve 70 months in federal prison for the initial drug trafficking as well as a consecutive 50 months for his subsequent conviction. His total 120-month sentence will be immediately followed by four years of supervised release.
In November 2020, law enforcement conducted an operation involving communication with a Mexican drug source of supply. The organization was to deliver kilogram quantities of meth in the Rio Grande Valley for transport to Chicago, Illinois.
On two occasions in November 2020, Almentor-Lopez transported and delivered a total of 40 kilograms of meth in Mission. He was arrested but granted bond pending further proceedings.
On March 1, 2021, Almentor-Lopez pleaded guilty to those charges.
However, the next day, authorities again apprehended him transporting and delivering an additional 20 kilograms of meth on behalf of the same drug organization.
The approximately 60 kilograms of meth Almentor-Lopez trafficked showed a purity level of 100%.
Almentor-Lopez has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Garcia prosecuted the case.
Updated September 23, 2024
