Drug cartel member sentenced to 35 years in prison
May 13, 2013, 8:23 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) – A high-ranking member of a Mexican drug cartel has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for conspiring to import multi-ton quantities of cocaine and marijuana into the U.S.
U.S. District Judge Barbara J. Rothstein sentenced Aurelio Cano Flores on Monday, following his conviction by a jury back in February. Cano Flores was also ordered to forfeit $15 billion in drug proceeds.
He had been extradited to the U.S. from Mexico in 2011, following his indictment on drug trafficking offenses the previous year.
According to the Justice Department, evidence at his trial showed that Cano Flores started working for the cartel around 2001, while working as a police officer.
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