MIAMI – Ramon Manriquez Castillo, 68, a dual U.S. and Mexican citizen; Edgar Rodriguez Ruano, 29, a Mexican citizen; Fernando Javier Escobar Tito, 48, an Ecuadorian citizen; and Anderson Jair Gamboa Nieto, 30, a Colombian citizen, made their initial appearances today in federal court in Fort Lauderdale, Fl. on drug trafficking charges after the Republic of Guinea-Bissau surrendered them to the United States on April 16.
A federal grand jury indictment unsealed today charges the defendants with conspiring to distribute large quantities of cocaine through Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, the Bahamas, and Guinea-Bissau using a U.S.-registered airplane, with a U.S. citizen onboard, from about November 2023 to September 2024. It also charges them with distributing cocaine in these countries using an airplane with a U.S. citizen onboard.
In September 2024, law enforcement authorities arrested the defendants in Guinea-Bissau and seized 2.6 metric tons of cocaine. Due to the strong and ongoing collaboration between the Government of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, the Judicial Police, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI WFO, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, and the U.S. Embassy to Senegal and Guinea-Bissau, the Republic of Guinea-Bissau surrendered the four alleged drug cartel affiliates to U.S. authorities on April 16. The defendants made their initial court appearances today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hunt in the Southern District of Florida.
If convicted, they face between 10 years and life in federal prison.
U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Deanne Reuter for DEA Miami Field Division, and Special Agent in Charge Sean Ryan of FBI Washington Field Office made the announcement.
DEA Miami and FBI Washington Field Office are investigating this case. The U.S. Marshals Service assisted with the surrender. Assistant U.S. Attorney James Ustynoski is prosecuting the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/ocdetf.
This matter is also part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
An indictment is merely an allegation, and defendants are innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 25-cr-60048.
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