Crime Correspondent: Atlanta

Former Falcons RB Jamal Anderson Arrested on Cocaine Charges

Former Falcons RB Jamal Anderson Arrested on Cocaine Charges

Former Falcons RB Jamal Anderson Arrested on Cocaine Charges.United States of Americal Anderson was arrested early Sunday for possession of ...

Jose Carlos "Charlie" Hinojosa, 31, of Roma - who now faces multiple counts of conspiracy, drug smuggling and money laundering in the ongoing case.

Sheriff Reymundo "Rey" Guerra has not been named in the 17-count indictment against more than 10 men and women accused of working with the Gulf Cartel.But a case file partially unsealed last week lists the warrant used to search his office among others described as "related" to the smuggling investigation.Federal authorities would not confirm Thursday whether the sheriff is expected to face any criminal charges in connection with the case or whether he is suspected of any wrongdoing at all.Guerra declined to comment when reached by phone Thursday afternoon.Agents executed a sealed search warrant on Guerra's Rio Grande City office on Sept. 4, taking boxes filled with documents, electronic equipment and photos.Investigators also seized a "gold-colored badge" from a safe under the sheriff's desk and an evidence bag filled with "a green leafy substance" from a drawer in the office, according to the federal receipt drawn up after the seizure.Two days earlier, authorities targeted a residence belonging to Jose Carlos "Charlie" Hinojosa, 31, of Roma - who now faces multiple counts of conspiracy, drug smuggling and money laundering in the ongoing case.Federal prosecutors allege Hinojosa and more than nine associates smuggled more than 2 tons of marijuana and 1,200 pounds of cocaine into the United States. Then, they reportedly helped move nearly half a million dollars in proceeds from narcotics sales back south across the border.Agents took several documents, stacks of cash wrapped in cellophane and magazines of ammunition during their search of Hinojosa's home, court documents state.He was arrested the same day as part of a nationwide sweep of men and women suspected of working with the Gulf Cartel, a Mexican drug trafficking organization that controls smuggling routes from Nuevo Laredo in the west to Matamoros in the east. U.S. Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey said during a news conference last week that 175 cartel members and associates - including Hinojosa and his alleged accomplices - had supplied drug markets in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, New York and even Italy.The 15-month investigation - dubbed "Project Reckoning" - involves several separate cases in federal courts across the country. But nearly all feature links to the Rio Grande Valley because of its status as the Gulf Cartel's primary smuggling corridor, federal investigators said Thursday. In all, more than 23 Valley residents have been indicted nationwide and several more people are expected to come under prosecutorial scrutiny as the names of several yet unnamed defendants are released.But it remains unclear whether Sheriff Guerra will be one of them.As Starr County's top law enforcement official, he polices a region with one of the highest rates of drug trafficking in the country.He succeeded Eugenio "Gene" Falcon as sheriff in 1998, after Falcon was charged with accepting bribes from a bail bondsman.

Jose Carlos "Charlie" Hinojosa, 31, of Roma - who now faces multiple counts of conspiracy, drug smuggling and money laundering in the ongoing case.

Sheriff Reymundo "Rey" Guerra has not been named in the 17-count indictment against more than 10 men and women accused of working ...

x-Slave Fashions used to distributed cocaine

The investigation, which included a court authorized wire tape of a telephone utilized by the defendants centered around the transport of substantial amounts of cocaine from Atlanta, Georgia, to the Wilmington, North Carolina, area. Thereafter, members of the conspiracy distributed the cocaine in various ways including through a local clothing store known as x-Slave Fashions. Investigators estimated that more than 550 kilograms were distributed in this way. The following defendants were sentenced on February 11, 2008: CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS GAUSE, JR. , was sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment, five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $200.00 special assessment. GAUSE, a leader in the organization, was also ordered to forfeit his interest in five tracts of real property and personal property. On September 12, 2007, GAUSE pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than five ( 5 ) kilograms of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, and to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924( c )( 1 ). HOWARD LEE DELTS, JR. , was sentenced to 176 months’ imprisonment, five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment. On September 12, 2007, DELTS pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than five ( 5 ) kilograms of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846. JAMES ADOLPH BROWN was sentenced to 151 months’ imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment. On September 12, 2007, BROWN pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute more than five ( 5 ) grams of cocaine base, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841( a )( 1 ). JOE NATHANIEL MCCRAY was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment, four years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment. On October 22, 2007, MCCRAY pleaded guilty to Count Two of a superseding indictment that charged MCCRAY with distribution of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841( a )( 1 ).

x-Slave Fashions used to distributed cocaine

The investigation, which included a court authorized wire tape of a telephone utilized by the defendants centered around the transport of su...