“Cocaine Offload” by Coast Guard News is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
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On Tuesday, a 37-year-old Colombian man was sentenced to 327 months behind bars – nearly 30 years – for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas.
Last November, Manuel Camilo Renteria Lemus pleaded guilty to “distribution of cocaine knowing it would be imported into the United States” and “conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine knowing it would be imported into the United States,” according to a news release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Texas.
“The sentence imposed today reflects how seriously the United States takes the importation of narcotics into our nation,” Acting U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei said in the release. “Whether you reside in Anytown, U.S.A., or live thousands of miles beyond American shores, if you scheme to smuggle drugs into the United States, we will find you and bring you to justice.”
As a national and resident of Colombia, Lemus emerged in 2016 as a key player in a drug trafficking organization that had made multi-ton shipments of cocaine, according to the release. The shipments originated from Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Mexico and Guatemala and were further distributed to the U.S.
The 37-year-old was the head of the Clan Del Golfo (CDG) Cartel’s Panamanian cell, which operated in Panama, Colombia and elsewhere. He’d carry out enforcement operations, receive maritime cocaine shipments in Palmira, Colombia, and collect tributes and taxes for the CDG.
Most of the cocaine shipments were carried by “go-fast boats,” airplanes, passenger vehicles and semi-tractor trailer trucks. Eventually, though, Lemus was extradited to the U.S. following his March 2020 arrest in Panama.
Lemus’ sentence illustrates the roles that the Drug Enforcement Administration and its counterparts play in Texas communities, as well as others countrywide, said DEA Dallas Special Agent in Charge Eduardo A. Chávez. Ultimately, Lemus’ greed landed him in federal prison after he collected taxes so that drug shipments could arrive in the United States.
“This sentence reflects that three years of being the cellhead [sic] of Transnational Criminal Organizations in Panama can result in 30 years of incarceration,” Chávez said.
Lemus’ arrest and prosecution were part of a multinational anti-drug investigation called “Operation Dragoneante.” In June, the same operation also saw a Honduran national sentenced to 168 months in federal prison for conspiracy to import cocaine.
