McALLEN, TEXAS ( ValleyCentral ) — A former city of Hidalgo maintenance man was sentenced to 10 years in prison Tuesday after being caught with more than 90 pounds of cocaine.
Jose Alfonso Treviño Jr., 46, of Hidalgo spent nearly a decade working for the city. In 2021, though, Treviño decided to make extra money by transporting cocaine for a drug trafficking organization.
“I ask you to forgive me for the crime that I committed,” Treviño said Tuesday, when he appeared in court for sentencing.
South Texas border officials request info on ‘missing water’ The city of Hidalgo hired Treviño in 2012, according to documents released under the Texas Public Information Act. He made just $10.35 per hour.
When, exactly, Treviño started working for the drug trafficking organization remains unclear.
His attorney, David R. Gorena of Edinburg, said Treviño joined the conspiracy in September 2021.
Smugglers paid Treviño to pick up large amounts of cocaine and drop off the drugs at other locations. Treviño, who lived near Wilbur E. Lucas Elementary School in Hidalgo, also stored cocaine in his garage.
A sheriff’s deputy stopped Treviño for a traffic violation on Jan. 19, 2022.
Treviño “admitted to being in possession of a personal use amount of cocaine,” according to the criminal complaint against him.
When the deputy searched Treviño’s truck, the deputy found about 24 pounds of cocaine.
La Matanza — A period of anti-Mexican violence in Texas Agents with Homeland Security Investigations, which is part of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, asked to speak with Treviño about the drugs.
Treviño requested permission to call his wife.
“During the call to his wife, TREVINO asked her to tell their son to clean out the garage in order for something to be parked in there,” according to the criminal complaint.
His wife, Rita Eva Moreno-Tinoco, 40, of Hidalgo, returned home and removed two plastic storage bins from the garage. She placed the storage bins in her car and drove away.
Officers stopped Moreno-Tinoco’s car and found about 69 pounds of cocaine in the storage bins.
“It’s painful being here,” Moreno-Tinoco said Tuesday morning, when she appeared in court for sentencing. “I am full of shame and remorse for what I did.”
Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane sentenced Treviño to 10 years in prison. Moreno-Tinoco, who had a smaller role in the scheme, was sentenced to three years and one month in prison.
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