A Mexican national has been sentenced to 110 months in prison for trafficking cocaine and illegally reentering the United States after a prior aggravated felony conviction, as announced by U.S. Attorney Alina Habba.
Anastacio Santiago Chaparro, also known as Arnoldo Urquidez, aged 41, from Mexico, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Edward S. Kiel in Camden federal court. The charges included possession with intent to distribute cocaine and illegal reentry by a convicted felon.
Court documents reveal that on November 6, 2023, Santiago Chaparro was apprehended while transporting over 10 kilograms of cocaine in a backpack. He admitted the cocaine was meant for distribution. Additionally, he had been deported from the United States to Mexico three times and had a previous conviction for being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm.
Judge Kiel also sentenced Santiago Chaparro to three years of supervised release and ordered him to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement regarding his deportation proceedings.
The investigation was credited to special agents from Homeland Security Investigations Newark under Special Agent in Charge Ricky Patel’s direction and the Drug Enforcement Administration New York under Special Agent in Charge Frank A. Tarentino’s direction.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Chana Y. Zuckier of the Bank Integrity, Money Laundering and Recovery Unit in Newark represented the government.
Defense counsel for Santiago Chaparro was Victor A. Afanador.
