Mexican National Sentenced to 210 Months for Methamphetamine Smuggling Conspiracy

A 55-year-old Mexican national residing in Houston has been sentenced to 210 months in federal prison following her conviction for conspiracy to import and possession with intent to deliver methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani. Ana Maria Pena-Gutierrez was found guilty by a federal jury in Laredo on February 8, 2023, after a two-day trial.

U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña ordered Pena-Gutierrez to serve her prison sentence followed by five years of supervised release. Between December 13, 2020, and June 14, 2022, she conspired with others to import nearly 60 kilograms of methamphetamine, organizing transportation, providing vehicles, and compensating drivers for their roles in the smuggling operations.

Co-conspirator Mike Mendoza testified during the trial that he was hired by Pena-Gutierrez to drive vehicles for drug smuggling multiple times between January and February 2021. He was arrested on February 25, 2021, while transporting 24 bundles of meth hidden within the tires of a pickup truck, weighing 56.232 kilograms and valued at approximately $451,244.

Mendoza admitted to previous successful smuggling trips and reported that Pena-Gutierrez paid him $5,000 for each trip and promised $9,000 at the time of his arrest. Another co-conspirator, Erik Alonso Martinez, was arrested on April 23, 2021, with 52.28 kilograms of meth hidden in a sedan’s fuel tank, with an approximate street value of $200,938. Authorities later discovered that Pena-Gutierrez provided the sedan to Martinez.

After her arrest on August 10, 2021, Pena-Gutierrez confessed to recruiting drivers and stated she received about $4,000 for each successful drug importation while compensating drivers between $7,000 and $8,000 per trip.

Evidence presented at trial included extensive phone records detailing communications between Pena-Gutierrez and Mendoza regarding drug pricing, along with irregularities in her bank activities. Mendoza and Martinez received sentences of 84 months and 174 days in federal prison, respectively, for their involvement.

Pena-Gutierrez will remain in custody until she is transferred to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility. The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from Customs and Border Protection. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jose Homero Ramirez, with former AUSAs Matthew Isaac and José Angel Moreno.