HSTF Investigation Leads to Lengthy Prison Sentence for Illegal Alien from Mexico Who Trafficked Methamphetamine Supplied by the Sinaloa Cartel

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – An investigation by the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) has resulted in the conviction and sentencing of an illegal alien from Mexico who distributed hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine for a drug trafficking organization supplied by the Sinaloa Cartel, announced Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Anselmo Nava-Sanchez, 32, was sentenced to 188 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. After serving his prison sentence, Nava-Sanchez will be removed from the United States. “The Sinaloa Cartel depends on drug trafficking organizations operating inside our country to distribute deadly drugs,” said U.S. Attorney Ferguson. “This one illegal alien defendant trafficked almost 800 pounds of drugs for the organization. For that, he will serve almost 16 years in an American prison before being deported.” According to filed documents and court proceedings, law enforcement identified Nava-Sanchez as a drug distributor for a Mexico-based drug trafficking organization (DTO) supplied by the Sinaloa Cartel. Over the course of the investigation, Nava-Sanchez was involved in the importation, manufacture, and distribution of hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine. In August 2023, law enforcement intercepted Nava-Sanchez’s vehicle on his way from Georgia to North Carolina to make an arranged drug delivery. During a search of the vehicle, law enforcement seized two large trash bags containing plastic bins with nearly 10 kilograms of methamphetamine. Law enforcement also searched Nava-Sanchez’s residence where they found multiple coolers filled with more than 85 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine, plastic tubs containing nearly 90 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, drug ledgers, digital scales, and items indicating that Nava-Sanchez was using his residence as a meth lab to convert liquid meth into crystal meth. Law enforcement also located a Buick SUV at the residence that had built-in trap compartments commonly used to avoid detection by law enforcement when transporting large quantities of drugs. In total, during the investigation, Nava-Sanchez was responsible for trafficking more than 360 kilograms of methamphetamine for the DTO. Nava-Sanchez will remain in federal custody until he is transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation to a federal facility.