Starr County drug smuggler who bribed corrupt cops sentenced to nearly 5 years in prison

VICTORIA, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A drug smuggler who bribed two police detectives was sentenced to nearly five years in prison Monday.

Jesus Beltran, 30, of Rio Grande City paid two police detectives to protect his father’s drug trafficking organization.

“I’m not a bad person,” Beltran said Monday morning, when he appeared in court for sentencing.

Jesus Beltran’s father, Ramiro, smuggled marijuana from the family ranch in Starr County to buyers in Dallas, Houston and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The family received marijuana “directly from Gulf Cartel commanders in Camargo, Mexico, and Miguel Aleman, Mexico,” Robert Hein, a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations, said during a hearing on Aug. 12, 2016. “The conduit for that, we later discovered, was a hit man for the cartel.”

They worked closely with the Texas Chicano Brotherhood and paid two Rio Grande City police detectives, Ramon De La Cruz Jr. and Noel Peña, for protection.

In one instance, Peña said he witnessed Jesus Beltran hand $5,000 to De La Cruz.

The family didn’t just transport marijuana.

With assistance from De La Cruz, they also double-crossed the Gulf Cartel and the Zetas.

The family would steal drugs and cash from the cartels, according to court records, and claim they had been seized by law enforcement.

When the cartels demanded proof, De La Cruz would provide the Beltran family with fake police reports.

De La Cruz also sold the Beltran family a government seal, which made the fake police reports look authentic.

Along with the seal, De La Cruz provided the family with a Starr County Sheriff’s Office radio. The radio allowed the Beltrans to spy on sheriff’s deputies, local police and other law enforcement officers.

In 2011, the Beltran family had a run-in with Border Patrol agents, who contacted the Starr County High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area task force.

Investigators found bunkers full of marijuana buried on the family ranch.

During the search, De La Cruz showed up, called Ramiro Beltran and placed the phone in his pocket — allowing the Beltran family to hear everything.

The information allowed the Beltrans to stay one step ahead of investigators.

In 2013, however, the family’s luck finally ran out.

At 1 p.m. on Jan. 21, 2013, a sheriff’s deputy stopped a red truck in Victoria County. The driver, Gustabo Ochoa Torres, was towing a horse trailer.

When the deputy searched the trailer, he discovered about 600 pounds of marijuana hidden in a secret compartment, according to a criminal complaint filed in the case.

The Victoria County Sheriff’s Office contacted Homeland Security Investigations, which is part of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Agents tracked the marijuana shipment back to the Beltran ranch.

Prosecutors brought charges against more than 20 people, including members of the Beltran family, De La Cruz and other Starr County drug smugglers.

One by one, they pleaded guilty.

De La Cruz was sentenced to 14 years in prison. Raul Beltran Jr. received 11 years. His son, Edward, got four years.

Ramiro Beltran, though, slipped away. He resurfaced in Mexico and started a business.

“From our understanding, it’s a horse racing-type business,” Hein, the federal agent, said during the Aug. 12, 2016, hearing.

Ramiro Beltran also called Special Agent Steven Greenwell, who handled the case, on several occasions.

“The most recent phone call was, in my opinion, to threaten me,” Greenwell said during a hearing on Oct. 12, 2016.

Homeland Security Investigations charged Ramiro’s sons — Ramiro Jr., Rosbel and Jesus — with participating in the conspiracy.

After his arrest, Jesus Beltran spent about four months in jail.

“I don’t have any intention of letting you out on a bond while your family members are hiding over in Mexico and refusing to turn themselves in,” U.S. Magistrate Judge B. Janice Ellington said during the hearing on Aug. 12, 2016. “So if that’s using what your relatives have done against you, so be it.”

Jesus Beltran pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge in December 2016. What happened during the hearing remains under seal.

Apparently convinced Jesus Beltran would show up for sentencing, U.S. District Judge John D. Rainey set bond at $10,000 with no cash deposit required.

Jesus Beltran didn’t keep his word.

In 2018, he skipped appointments with the U.S. Probation Office and Homeland Security Investigations. Prosecutors discovered that Jesus Beltran had joined his father in Mexico and become a fugitive.

His father suffered from diabetes, said attorney Sam Fugate of Kingsville, who represented Jesus Beltran.

“This young man went down to help his dad,” Fugate said.

Ramiro Beltran died in Mexico, according to a motion filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, which didn’t provide any details about his death.

After his father died, Jesus Beltran decided to stop running.

“He came back on his own volition,” Fugate said.

Jesus Beltran crossed the bridge that connects Roma with Miguel Aleman on Jan. 17, 2025, and turned himself in, according to information released by the U.S. Marshals Service.

On Monday morning, Jesus Beltran returned to the wood-paneled courtroom in Victoria where he pleaded guilty.

“He started with his dad, when he was 9 years old, in the marijuana trade,” Fugate said.

Ramiro Beltran set a bad example for his sons, Fugate said, and created a difficult situation for his family.

Fighting back tears, Jesus Beltran asked Rainey, the federal judge, for the shortest prison sentence possible.

Rainey said guidelines published by the U.S. Sentencing Commission suggested 78 to 97 months.

After weighing several factors, including the fact that Jesus Beltran played a minor role in the conspiracy, turned himself in and waived his right to appeal, Rainey settled on 57 months in prison.

“I hope you learned your lesson from this,” Rainey said.

Jesus Beltran walked away slowly, wiping tears from his eyes.