Gulf Cartel drug trafficker from San Benito sentenced to 10 years in prison

A 42-year-old San Benito man who was a key player for the Gulf Cartel in a large-scale cocaine smuggling trafficking network that moved drugs to North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Ohio and Indiana has been sentenced to a decade in prison.

Salvado Cortez-Nava, who pleaded guilty on Aug. 24, 2023 to conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine, was sentenced in Brownsville federal court on Wednesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas announced in a press release.

Cortez-Nava’s criminal organization used sophisticated methods, including using vehicles with hidden compartments to move cocaine from Matamoros into the United States. He also supervised recruitment of people to carry out the smuggling operations.

Investigators honed in on Cortez-Nava through a multi-agency task force investigating cash and drug seizures from 2016 to 2020.

In all, authorities seized $1.5 million in drug proceeds and a little more than 330 pounds of cocaine, according to the release.

At the hearing, U.S. District Judge Rolando Olvera heard how Cortez-Nava ordered the kidnapping of a co-conspirator and threatened harm of the loss of several drug loads.

U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani said the Gulf Cartel’s drug trafficking, violence and human smuggling reflect the complex challenge posed on the border.

“Salvador Cortez-Nava, aka Chava, demonstrated his allegiance to this cartel by coordinating the distribution of cocaine and employing ruthless tactics, including ordering kidnappings and threats of violence,” Hamdani said in the release. “His actions underscored the perilous influence of the cartel as he transported drug proceeds back into Mexico.

“By sending Cortez-Nava to prison, justice delivers another blow against the Gulf Cartel’s violent hold on the narcotics trade.”

Craig Larrabee, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in San Antonio, credited the hard work of agents with unique expertise to combat organized crime.

“Through a multi-agency task force, we uncovered over $1.5 million in drug proceeds and seized more than 150 kilograms of cocaine; this amount of poison has no place in our country,” Larrabee said in the release.

Daniel C. Comeaux, special agent in charge for the Houston Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, said aggressive enforcement continues to hurt drug traffickers by shutting down Cortez- Nava’s organization.

“Regardless of the rank or the level of sophistication used to traffic drugs and money, the DEA has always been able to disassemble the structure these drug cartels have in place to move poison into American communities and successfully eradicate the threat,” Comeaux said in the release.

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