Three men linked to a methamphetamine production and trafficking operation that customized orders for their clientele are facing years behind bars. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Alfredo Duarte, Abraham Pena-Quintero, and Francisco Hernandez-Madrid have each been sentenced to prison following a scheme that involved cooking method to create large crystal meth based on customer specifications.
The trio was snared in an undercover operation labeled "Operation: Knock Down," which was to specifically investigate and disrupt the trafficking of dangerous narcotics in the McAllen, Texas region. Duarte, hailing from Fullerton, California, led the custom meth "cook-to-order" scheme. He was slapped with a prison term of 135 months, as U.S. District Judge Randy Crane described the operation's complexity and the risk it posed to the community in a statement obtained by the Justice Department's press release.
His counterparts, Pena-Quintero, 39, and Hernandez-Madrid, 49, both Mexican citizens, are facing 78 and 57 months in prison, respectively. Following their incarceration, these men are expected to undergo removal proceedings due to their non-U.S. citizen status. Duarte is also ordered three years of supervised release once he completes his term.
The investigation, which took root around 2021, exposed how Duarte and his accomplices would import meth in its liquid form from Mexico and then proceed to cook it into crystals. The group had effectively delivered over 11 kilograms of meth within the local area. Duarte, worked as the face of the operation, engaging directly with customers, while his associates, Pena-Quintero and Hernandez-Madrid, were primarily involved in the narcotics' transportation.
During the sentencing, Judge Crane highlighted that the defendants trafficked meth in a manner that was distinctly hazardous and specialized, evidenced further by an attempt to trade guns in exchange for drugs. Duarte, who can currently remain out on bond, will eventually have to surrender voluntarily, while his co-conspirators will be transferred to a federal prison—a decision pending by the authorities. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, together with the Drug Enforcement Administration, effectively conducted the operation, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert L. Guerra Jr. taking the lead on the federal prosecution.
