Article:
The highest-ranking Sinaloa cartel member ever sentenced in the U.S. was given 22 years in prison Monday by a federal judge in Chicago. 
  
 "I tell you — and I tell you on behalf of all Chicagoans … we are tired, tired of drug trafficking, and it continues to hurt this city and this country," U.S. District Chief Judge Ruben Castillo said in imposing the sentence. "A strong message needs to go out." 
  
 Prosecutors alleged that Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez was the cartel's logistics coordinator as well as a trusted lieutenant and lifelong friend of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the captured drug lord who was once Mexico's most wanted man. 
  
 Vasquez-Hernandez, charged with Guzman in what has been called the most significant drug prosecution in Chicago history, pleaded guilty in April to one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics for a single 276-kilogram shipment of cocaine from Mexico to Chicago by train. 
  
 His attorney, however, contended that twin Chicago brothers whose cooperation was key to the prosecution had exaggerated Vasquez-Hernandez's involvement to help themselves. 
  
 The attorney, Paul Brayman, noted that the brothers, Pedro and Margarito Flores, set up the 276-kilo shipment while they were supposed to be working undercover for the Drug Enforcement Administration but never told their government handlers and apparently pocketed millions of dollars from the deal. 
  
 The Flores brothers, who ran distribution for the Sinaloa cartel in Chicago, admitted supplying vast quantities of cocaine and heroin to cities across the U.S. and Canada. Yet they face only 10 to 16 years in prison because of their extensive cooperation, according to a 2012 plea agreement unsealed Monday. They are scheduled to be sentenced next month on an undisclosed date. 
  
 Brayman told the judge Vasquez-Hernandez showed "no indicia of wealth," driving a 10-year-old car and living in only one house. His family portrayed the slight man with salt-and-pepper hair as a skilled auto-body worker who taught his six sons the value of hard work. 
  
 Castillo noted that just because the government hadn't been able to locate Vasquez-Hernandez's wealth did not mean he hadn't concealed a fortune. He called it "nonsensical" that a body-shop worker would stumble into a 600-pound cocaine deal in his first attempt but agreed that the alleged cartel member seemed a blank slate. 
  
 "Who is Mr. Vasquez-Hernandez?" the judge asked. "He has no assets — it's like he's Mr. X. I'd like to know who it is that I'm sentencing." 
  
 Prosecutors allege Vasquez-Hernandez was a boyhood friend of "El Chapo" who coordinated the importation of hundreds of tons of narcotics via speedboats, jumbo jets and even submarines. 
  
 His wife also took part in the scheme, helping her husband launder cash, Asst. U.S. Attorney Michael Ferrara said Monday. No charges have been filed against her. 
  
 According to their plea agreements, The Flores brothers took responsibility for transporting back to Mexico some $938 million in narcotics proceeds from the sale of up to 2000 kilos of cocaine a month during a three-year period from 2005 to 2008. The brothers have agreed to forfeit $3.6 million to the U.S. government as well as other assets such as a Bentley and more than $400,000 in jewelry, according to the plea deals. 
  
 But they were allowed to keep a combined $300,000 for their families, according to the plea agreements. 
  
 Vasquez-Hernandez, 59, apologized before Castillo handed down what his attorney said amounted to a life sentence. He must serve 85 percent of his term — almost 19 years in prison. 
  
 "First of all I want to thank God because this is coming to an end," said Vazquez-Hernandez through a Spanish interpreter. "I ask for your forgiveness and to have pity on me. I accept responsibility for what I did. I'm sorry." 
  
 "I love you dad," his oldest son, Gabriel Vazquez, 43, called from the courtroom gallery as his father was led away after the sentence was imposed. The son later told reporters outside court that he thought the sentence was "harsh...for a man of my dad's caliber." 
  
 "He's not the monster that everyone says he is," Vazquez said. "He's a great person. He's been a hard worker all his life." 
  
 "He's heartbroken. This is not my dad. This is not him." 
  
 Earlier this year, prosecutors revealed that Jesus Vicente Zambada-Niebla, the highest-ranking Sinaloa cartel member arrested on U.S. charges, secretly pleaded guilty in Chicago last year and has been cooperating with authorities. 
  
 sschmadeke@tribpub.com 
  
 Twitter @SteveSchmadeke ||||| FILE - This Feb. 22, 2014 file photo shows Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the head of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, being escorted to a helicopter in Mexico City following his capture overnight in the beach resort... (Associated Press) 
  
 FILE - This Feb. 22, 2014 file photo shows Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the head of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, being escorted to a helicopter in Mexico City following his capture overnight in the beach resort... (Associated Press) 
  
 CHICAGO (AP) — A U.S. judge sentenced a reputed lieutenant of captured Mexican drug lord Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman to 22 years in prison Monday for his role in a $1 billion trafficking conspiracy, saying the stiff sentence should send a message to traffickers everywhere. 
  
 Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez, 59, stood unmoving in a Chicago courtroom, listening through a Spanish-speaking interpreter as Chief U.S. District Judge Ruben Castillo's tone became more stern. 
  
 "I tell you on behalf of all citizens of Chicago ... we are tired of this drug trafficking," he said. 
  
 The case is regarded as one of the U.S. government's most important against Mexican cartels. Guzman remains jailed in Mexico and Mexican authorities haven't said if they might extradite him to Chicago. 
  
 Minutes before the sentence was imposed, a deferential Hernandez said he wanted to apologize. 
  
 "I ask you for forgiveness and for you to have pity on me," he told the judge. 
  
 Defense attorney Paul Brayman had asked that Castillo impose no more than the mandatory minimum 10-year sentence, saying "anything more ... is a death sentence" for his client. Hernandez pleaded guilty this year to possessing heroin and cocaine with intent to distribute. 
  
 After the hearing, Hernandez's 43-year-old son, Gabriel Vasquez, told reporters the punishment was too harsh. 
  
 "He's not the monster that everyone says he is," an emotional Vasquez said. "He's a family man." 
  
 Early at Monday's hearing, Castillo repeatedly asked the question: "Who is this defendant?" 
  
 Prosecutors relied on two Sinaloa cartel associates-turned-government witnesses, Pedro and Margarito Flores, to paint Hernandez as a close friend of Guzman who used his logistical skills to ship tons of drugs by train from Mexico to Chicago concealed amid furniture cargo. 
  
 But the defense described him as an auto repairman who got caught up in a one-off drug deal. They also attacked the credibility of the Flores twins, saying they exaggerated Hernandez's role in the cartel to curry favor with prosecutors. 
  
 In the end, Castillo said there were legitimate questions about the believability of the twins. And he said he would not factor in whether Hernandez was or wasn't a ranking cartel figure, saying it would be unfair "to let the entire specter of 'El Chapo' Guzman" influence the sentence. 
  
 But Castillo also said he didn't accept the portrayal of Hernandez as someone who stumbled into the one deal for which he was extradited in 2012 from Mexico to Chicago. 
  
 "I'm not going to sit here ... and think for one second this was the first time you happened to do this," he said. 
  
 Secret recordings and other evidence provided by the twin brothers in 2008 led to the Chicago indictments of Hernandez and 10 others, including Guzman and the Flores twins themselves. 
  
 Hernandez was the first up for sentencing. 
  
 Prosecutors say the Flores brothers cut deals with Guzman, Hernandez and others to distribute drugs in several cities, including Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Washington. 
  
 ___ 
  
 Follow Michael Tarm on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mtarm |||||Summary:
– A man prosecutors say was a top member of Mexico's Sinaloa cartel was sentenced to 22 years yesterday after what the Chicago Tribune reports has been called the most significant drug prosecution in the city's history. Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez, allegedly the cartel's logistics chief and a lieutenant of captured drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, pleaded guilty earlier this year to involvement in a $1 billion plot to smuggle 600 pounds of cocaine from Mexico to Chicago by train. "I tell you and I tell you on behalf of all Chicagoans … we are tired, tired of drug trafficking, and it continues to hurt this city and this country," a federal judge said as he handed down the sentence. The 59-year-old's lawyer, however, argued that his client was merely a body shop worker who got caught up in a single drug deal, adding that two cartel members who became DEA informants had exaggerated his role in the deal, the AP reports.
Artikel: Den högst rankade kartellmedlemmen Sinaloa som någonsin dömts i USA fick 22 års fängelse måndagen av en federal domare i Chicago. "Jag säger er — och jag säger er å alla Chicagos vägnar ... vi är trötta, trötta på narkotikahandel, och det fortsätter att skada denna stad och detta land," USA: s distriktsdomare Ruben Castillo sade i att införa domen. "Ett starkt budskap måste gå ut." Åklagare hävdade att Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez var kartellens logistiksamordnare samt en betrodd löjtnant och livslång vän till Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, den tillfångatagna knarkkungen som en gång var Mexikos mest efterlysta man. Vasquez-Hernandez, åtalad för Guzman i vad som har kallats den mest betydande drogåtalen i Chicagos historia, erkände sig i april skyldig till en sammansvärjning för att med tåg distribuera narkotika för en enda 276-kilogramtransport av kokain från Mexiko till Chicago. Hans advokat hävdade dock att tvillingbröder i Chicago vars samarbete var nyckeln till åtalet hade överdrivit Vasquez-Hernandez inblandning för att hjälpa sig själva. Advokaten, Paul Brayman, noterade att bröderna, Pedro och Margarito Flores, satte upp 276-kiloslasten medan de var tänkta att arbeta under täckmantel för Narkotikamyndigheten men aldrig berättade för sina regeringshandläggare och tydligen fick miljontals dollar från affären. Bröderna Flores, som drev distributionen för Sinaloa-kartellen i Chicago, medgav att de levererade stora mängder kokain och heroin till städer över hela USA och Kanada. Ändå står de bara inför 10 till 16 års fängelse på grund av sitt omfattande samarbete, enligt ett avtal om åberopande som inte är förseglat på måndagen 2012. De ska dömas nästa månad på ett datum som inte avslöjas. Brayman berättade för domaren Vasquez-Hernandez att han inte visade "någon rikedomens indicia", att han körde en 10-årig bil och bodde i bara ett hus. Hans familj skildrade den lättsamme mannen med salt- och pepperhår som en skicklig autokroppsarbetare som lärde sina sex söner värdet av hårt arbete. Castillo noterade att bara för att regeringen inte hade kunnat lokalisera Vasquez-Hernandez förmögenhet så hade han inte dolt en förmögenhet. Han kallade det "icke-sensiskt" att en kroppsarbetare skulle snubbla in i en kokainaffär på 600 kilo i sitt första försök men gick med på att den påstådda kartellmedlemmen verkade vara en tom fläck. "Vem är Mr. Vasquez-Hernandez?" frågade domaren. »Han har inga tillgångar — det är som om han är mr X. jag skulle vilja veta vem det är jag dömer.» Åklagare påstår att Vasquez-Hernandez var en barndomsvän till "El Chapo" som samordnade importen av hundratals ton narkotika via motorbåtar, jumbojet och till och med ubåtar. Hans fru deltog också i programmet, och hjälpte sin man tvätta kontanter, Asst. Åklagare Michael Ferrara sa måndag. Inga åtal har väckts mot henne. Enligt deras avtal om grundande tog bröderna Flores ansvaret för att under en treårsperiod från 2005 till 2008 transportera tillbaka omkring 938 miljoner dollar i narkotika från Mexiko. Bröderna har gått med på att förverka 3,6 miljoner dollar till USA:s regering samt andra tillgångar som en Bentley och mer än 400.000 dollar i smycken, enligt uppgörelserna. Men de fick behålla en sammanlagd summa på 300 000 dollar för sina familjer, enligt överenskommelserna. Vasquez-Hernandez, 59, bad om ursäkt innan Castillo avkunnade vad hans advokat sade uppgick till ett livstidsstraff. Han måste avtjäna 85 procent av sin tid — nästan 19 år i fängelse. "För det första vill jag tacka Gud för att detta närmar sig sitt slut", sade Vazquez-Hernandez genom en spansk tolk. "Jag ber om din förlåtelse och att ha medlidande med mig. Jag tar på mig ansvaret för det jag gjorde. Jag är ledsen." "Jag älskar dig pappa," hans äldsta son, Gabriel Vazquez, 43, ringde från rättssalen galleriet som hans far leddes bort efter domen var utdömd. Sonen berättade senare för reportrar utanför rätten att han tyckte att domen var "harsh... for a man of my pappa's kaliber". "Han är inte det monster som alla säger att han är", sa Vazquez. "Han är en fantastisk person. Han har arbetat hårt hela sitt liv." "Han är förkrossad. Det här är inte min pappa. Det här är inte han." Tidigare i år avslöjade åklagare att Jesus Vicente Zambada-Niebla, den högst rankade kartellmedlemmen i Sinaloa som gripits på amerikanskt åtal, i hemlighet erkände sig skyldig i Chicago förra året och har samarbetat med myndigheter. Sschmadeke@tribpub.com Twitter @SteveSchmadeke ́ FILE - Denna 22 februari 2014 filfoto visar Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, chefen för Mexikos Sinaloa Cartel, eskorteras till en helikopter i Mexico City efter att han fångas över natten i stranden resort... (Associated Press) FILE - Denna 22 februari 2014 fil foto visar Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, chef för Mexikos Sinaloa Cartel, eskorteras till en helikopter i Mexico City efter att han fångats över natten i stranden resort... (Associated Press) CHICAGO (AP) — En amerikansk domare dömde en känd löjtnant till fånga mexikanska knark lord Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman till 22 år i fängelse måndag för sin roll i en $ 1 miljard trafficking konspiration, säger den stela meningen bör skicka ett meddelande till människohandlare överallt. Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez, 59, stod orörlig i en rättssal i Chicago och lyssnade genom en spanskspråkig tolk som chefsdomare Ruben Castillos ton blev allt mer sträv. "Jag säger er å alla Chicagos medborgares vägnar ... vi är trötta på denna narkotikahandel," sade han. Fallet betraktas som en av USA:s viktigaste mot mexikanska karteller. Guzman är fortfarande fängslad i Mexiko och mexikanska myndigheter har inte sagt om de kan utlämna honom till Chicago. Minuter innan domen utdömdes, sade en underdånig Hernandez att han ville be om ursäkt. "Jag ber dig om förlåtelse och att du ska ha medlidande med mig", sade han till domaren. Försvarsadvokat Paul Brayman hade bett att Castillo inte skulle utdöma mer än den obligatoriska minimistraffet på 10 år, och sagt "någonting mer ... är en dödsdom" för sin klient. Hernandez erkände sig skyldig i år till att ha tagit heroin och kokain i avsikt att distribuera. Efter förhöret berättade Hernandez 43-årige son, Gabriel Vasquez, för reportrar att straffet var för hårt. "Han är inte monstret som alla säger att han är", sa en känslosam Vasquez. "Han är en familjefar." Tidigt vid måndagens förhör ställde Castillo upprepade gånger frågan: "Vem är denne tilltalade?" Åklagare förlitade sig på att två av Sinaloas kartellkollegor vände regeringsvittnen, Pedro och Margarito Flores, skulle måla Hernandez som en nära vän till Guzman som använde sina logistiska färdigheter för att frakta tonvis med droger med tåg från Mexiko till Chicago gömda mitt bland möbellast. Men försvaret beskrev honom som en bilreparatör som fastnade i en engångsdrogaffär. De angrep även Flores-tvillingarnas trovärdighet, och menade att de överdrev Hernandez roll i kartellen för att curryfavorit hos åklagare. Till slut sa Castillo att det fanns legitima frågor om tvillingarnas trohet. Och han sa att han inte skulle ta hänsyn till om Hernandez var eller inte var en rankad kartellfigur, säger att det skulle vara orättvist "att låta hela spöket av 'El Chapo' Guzman" påverka domen. Men Castillo sa också att han inte accepterade porträtteringen av Hernandez som någon som snubblade in i en affär som han utlämnades 2012 från Mexiko till Chicago. "Jag tänker inte sitta här ... och tänka för en sekund detta var första gången du råkade göra detta," sade han. Hemliga inspelningar och andra bevis från tvillingbröderna 2008 ledde till Chicagotalan mot Hernandez och 10 andra, däribland Guzman och tvillingarna Flores själva. Hernandez var den förste som dömdes. Åklagare säger att bröderna Flores har gjort affärer med Guzman, Hernandez och andra för att distribuera droger i flera städer, bland annat Chicago, New York, Los Angeles och Washington. ___ Följ Michael Tarm på Twitter på https://twitter.com/mtarm ́ ́«Sammanfattning:
Article: The highest ranking cartel member Sinaloa ever convicted in the United States received 22 years in prison Monday by a federal judge in Chicago. "I'm telling you — and I'm telling you on behalf of all Chicago ... we're tired, tired of drug trafficking, and it continues to hurt this city and this country," U.S. District Judge Ruben Castillo said in introducing the verdict. "A strong message must go out." Prosecutors claimed that Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez was the cartel's logistics coordinator as well as a trusted lieutenant and lifelong friend of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the captured drug king who was once Mexico's most wanted man. Vasquez-Hernandez, charged with Guzman in what has been called the most significant drug charge in Chicago history, pleaded guilty in April to a conspiracy to distribute drugs by train for a single 276-kilogram shipment of cocaine from Mexico to Chicago. However, his lawyer claimed that twin brothers in Chicago whose collaboration was the key to the prosecution had exaggerated Vasquez-Hernandez' involvement to help themselves. The lawyer, Paul Brayman, noted that the brothers, Pedro and Margarito Flores, set up the 276-pound load while they were supposed to work undercover for the Narcotics Agency but never told their government officers and apparently received millions of dollars from the deal. The Flores brothers, who ran the distribution for the Sinaloa cartel in Chicago, admitted that they supplied large amounts of cocaine and heroin to cities across the United States and Canada. Yet, they only face 10 to 16 years in prison due to their extensive cooperation, under an invocation agreement that is not sealed on Monday 2012. They will be sentenced next month on a date that will not be revealed. Brayman told Judge Vasquez-Hernandez that he did not show "any indicia of wealth", that he was driving a 10-year-old car and lived in just one house. His family depicted the lighthearted man with salt and pepper hairs as a skilled autobody worker who taught his six sons the value of hard work. Castillo noted that just because the government had not been able to locate Vasquez-Hernandez's fortune, he had not hidden a fortune. He called it "non-sensical" that a body worker would stumble into a 600-pound cocaine store in his first attempt but agreed that the alleged cartel member appeared to be an empty spot. "Who's Mr. Vasquez-Hernandez?" asked the judge. "He has no assets — it's as if he's Mr. X. I'd like to know who it is I'm judging." Prosecutors claim that Vasquez-Hernandez was a childhood friend of "El Chapo" who coordinated the import of hundreds of tons of narcotics via motorboats, jumbo jets and even submarines. His wife also participated in the program, helping her husband wash cash, Asst. Prosecutor Michael Ferrara said Monday. No charges have been filed against her. Under their founding agreement, the Flores brothers took responsibility for transporting back some $938 million in drugs from Mexico over a three-year period from 2005 to 2008. The brothers have agreed to forfeit $3.6 million to the U.S. government as well as other assets such as a Bentley and more than $400,000 in jewelry, according to the deals. But they had to keep a total of $300,000 for their families, according to the agreements. Vasquez-Hernandez, 59, apologized before Castillo delivered what his lawyer said amounted to a life sentence. He must serve 85 percent of his time — nearly 19 years in prison. "First of all, I want to thank God that this is coming to an end," said Vazquez-Hernandez through a Spanish interpreter. "I beg your forgiveness and to have pity on me. I take responsibility for what I did. I'm sorry." "I love you dad," his oldest son, Gabriel Vazquez, 43, called from the courtroom gallery that his father was led away after the sentence was passed. The son later told reporters outside of court that he thought the verdict was "harsh... for a man of my father's caliber". "He's not the monster that everyone says he is," Vazquez said. "He's an amazing person. He's been working hard all his life." "He's devastated. This isn't my dad. This isn't him." Earlier this year, prosecutors revealed that Jesus Vicente Zambada-Niebla, the highest-ranking cartel member of Sinaloa arrested on U.S. prosecution, secretly pleaded guilty in Chicago last year and has collaborated with authorities. Sschmadeke@tribpub.com Twitter @SteveSchmadeke ́ FILE - This February 22, 2014 file photo shows Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the head of Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel, escorted to a helicopter in Mexico City after he is caught overnight in the beach resort... (Associated Press) CHICAGO (AP) — An American judge sentenced a famous lieutenant to capture Mexican drugs Lord Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman to 22 years in prison Monday for his role in a $1 billion trafficking conspiracy, says the rigid sentence should send a message to human traffickers everywhere. Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez, 59, stood motionless in a courtroom in Chicago and listened through a Spanish-language interpreter as Chief Justice Ruben Castillo's tone became increasingly rough. "I'm telling you on behalf of all Chicago citizens...we're tired of this drug trafficking," he said. The case is considered one of the most important against Mexican cartels in the United States. Guzman is still imprisoned in Mexico and Mexican authorities have not said whether they can extradite him to Chicago. Minutes before the sentence was passed, a subordinate Hernandez said he wanted to apologize. "I ask you for forgiveness and for you to have pity on me," he told the judge. Defense attorney Paul Brayman had asked that Castillo not impose more than the mandatory minimum sentence in 10 years, saying "something more ... is a death sentence" for his client. Hernandez pleaded guilty this year to having taken heroin and cocaine for the purpose of distributing. After the hearing, Hernandez 43-year-old son, Gabriel Vasquez, told reporters that the sentence was too harsh. "He's not the monster that everyone says he is," said an emotional Vasquez. "He's a family man." Early at Monday's hearing, Castillo repeatedly asked the question, "Who is this defendant?" Prosecutors relied on two of Sinaloa's cartel colleagues to turn government witnesses, Pedro and Margarito Flores, to paint Hernandez as a close friend of Guzman who used his logistical skills to carry tons of drugs by train from Mexico to Chicago hidden amid furniture cargo. But the defense described him as a car repairman who got caught up in a one-time drug deal. They also attacked the credibility of the Flores twins, saying that they exaggerated Hernandez's role in the cartel to curry favor with prosecutors. Finally, Castillo said there were legitimate questions about the allegiance of the twins. And he said he wouldn't take into account whether or not Hernandez was a ranked cartel figure, saying it would be unfair "to let the whole ghost of 'El Chapo' Guzman" influence the verdict. But Castillo also said he did not accept the portrayal of Hernandez as someone who stumbled into a deal that he was extradited in 2012 from Mexico to Chicago. "I'm not gonna sit here... and think for a second this was the first time you happened to do this," he said. Secret recordings and other evidence from the 2008 twin brothers led to Chicago actions against Hernandez and 10 others, including Guzman and the Flores twins themselves. Hernandez was the first to be convicted. Prosecutors say the Flores brothers have done business with Guzman, Hernandez and others to distribute drugs in several cities, including Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and Washington. ___ Follow Michael Tarm on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mtarm
– En åklagare säger att han var en toppmedlem i Mexikos Sinaloa-kartellen dömdes till 22 år i går efter vad Chicago Tribune-rapporterna har kallat det mest betydande narkotikabrottet i stadens historia. Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez, som påstås vara kartellens logistikchef och en löjtnant till den tillfångatagna knarkkungen Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, erkände sig skyldig tidigare i år till inblandning i en 1 miljard dollars komplott för att smuggla 600 pund kokain från Mexiko till Chicago med tåg. "Jag säger dig och jag säger dig å alla Chicagos vägnar ... vi är trötta, trötta på narkotikahandel, och det fortsätter att skada denna stad och detta land," en federal domare sade när han fällde domen. 59-åringens advokat hävdade dock att hans klient bara var en kroppsarbetare som fastnade i en enda knarkaffär, och tillade att två kartellmedlemmar som blev DEA-informatör hade överdrivit hans roll i affären, AP-rapporterna.
“A prosecutor says he was a top member of Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel was sentenced to 22 years yesterday after what the Chicago Tribune reports have called the most significant drug crime in the city’s history. Alfredo Vasquez-Hernandez, allegedly the logistics chief of the cartel and a lieutenant to captured drug king Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, pleaded guilty earlier this year to involvement in a $1 billion plot to smuggle 600 pounds of cocaine from Mexico to Chicago by train. "I'm telling you and I'm telling you on behalf of all Chicago...we're tired, tired of drug trafficking, and it continues to hurt this city and this country," a federal judge said when he convicted. However, the 59-year-old's lawyer claimed that his client was just a body worker who got caught up in a single drug deal, adding that two cartel members who became DEA informant had exaggerated his role in the deal, the AP reports.