Mexican Illegal Pleads Guilty To Leading Meth Operation

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Orlando, FL - A 34-year-old Mexican man joins a list of 17 other people - mostly Volusia or Flagler county residents - who have entered guilty pleas for their roles in a large methamphetamine distribution ring.

Juan Alberto Flores-Jimenez - a resident of Tamaulipas who was in the United States illegally, according to the U.S. Department of Justice - admitted guilt in federal court today (February 8th) to conspiring to possess 50 grams or more of meth with the intent to distribute.

DOJ's Middle Florida office says Flores-Jimenez was the leader of a Georgia-based drug trafficking organization (DTO) distributing large amounts of meth to motorcycle clubs in Florida, including the Daytona Beach area.

"In some instances, members of different Florida-based DTOs traveled to Georgia to pick up large amounts of methamphetamine from the Flores-Jimenez DTO for further distribution in Florida," stated a DOJ press release. "In other instances, runners associated with the Flores-Jimenez DTO transported large amounts of methamphetamine from Georgia to locations in Jacksonville and Daytona Beach."

Prosecutors think Flores-Jimenez's group distributed at least 4.5 kilograms of meth in Florida between April 2017 and September 2018.

Also known as "Juan Cantu" or "Stoner", Flores-Jimenez faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

DOJ officials say Flores-Jimenez was deported twice from the U.S. in 2014 and 2015. He was arrested again in September 2018 and charged with illegal reentry into the United States. He pled guilty to that charge in January.

All these arrests and pleas follow a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration which led to indictments last summer.