Tuesday 13 April 2010

BZP smuggler sentenced to 5 years in prison

BZP smuggler sentenced to 5 years in prison: "Nen Angel Cruces, 23, of Daly City, Calif., was arrested by ICE agents in June 2009 at a Bellingham, Wash., storage facility where thousands of the BZP tablets he helped smuggle from Canada were temporarily stored. Cruces pleaded guilty in November 2009 to possession of BZP with intent to distribute.
According to court documents, Cruces made a dozen trips between the United States and Canada during a nine-month period starting in August 2008. ICE’s investigation into his activity revealed that he was storing BZP and Ecstasy tablets in a storage unit until he was able to transport them to Chicago by train.
Cruces relied on others to illegally smuggle the tablets into the United States. However, he would cross the border at the same time, in a separate vehicle, and meet the smuggler at the storage unit.
When the quantity of tablets reached 100,000, Cruces would board an Amtrak train destined for Chicago. Once in Chicago, he hired a limousine and traveled to Detroit where the drugs were distributed for sale.
“Today’s prison sentence is a reminder of the serious consequences drug traffickers face for trying to bring illicit drugs into our communities,” said Leigh Winchell, special agent in charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Seattle. “ICE remains committed to dismantling the international drug trade while ensuring that those who are involved don’t benefit financially.”"

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