Drug smuggling operation leader gets 20 years in prison
PHILADELPHIA — A drug smuggling group leader was sentenced to 20 years in prison for running a large-scale operation bringing heroin into the United States from the Dominican Republic. The smuggling group was found and dismantled through an investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Higinio Castillo, 25, from Philadelphia, was sentenced today for leading Castillo Drug Smuggling Organization (CDSO). Castillo and the members of the CDSO recruited couriers who swallowed packets of heroin inside their bodies in order to smuggle the drugs into the country.
“Castillo was wreaking havoc on the community by bringing in kilos of heroin while he was brutally abusing those caught in his group’s crosshairs,” said John P. Kelleghan, HSI Philadelphia special agent in charge. “HSI will continue to target transnational criminal organizations and bring those involved to justice.”
Between November 2010 and March 2012, Castillo imported more than eight kilograms of heroin and more than one kilogram of cocaine. He pleaded guilty on April 29, 2014 to 13 counts including conspiracy, kidnapping, firearms violations and numerous drug charges.
Castillo lured people into acting as mules with promises of money and free vacations. He personally participated in the kidnapping of one drug courier whom he accused of escaping with about a pound of heroin, and he unsuccessfully attempted to kidnap the children of another courier who had not returned the heroin that she had imported. Castillo’s drug supplier was a relative in the Dominican Republic.
Castillo ran the CDSO with co-defendant Michael Nunez-Rodriguez. Rodriguez and the nine remaining defendants have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. After recruiting the couriers, members of the CDSO would drive them to airports and pick them up on their returns.
After the couriers cleared U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), they were taken to an apartment controlled by the CDSO where they would expel the drug pellets. The CDSO would then repackage the drugs for sale. When a courier was suspecting of stealing the smuggled drugs, the members would intimidate and threaten the courier.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Legrome D. Davis ordered 10 years of supervised release, a $5,000 fine, and a $1,300 special assessment. The government is also seeking forfeiture of all assets derived from any criminal activity.
The case was investigated by HSI with assistance from CBP, the Philadelphia Police Department, Pennsylvania State Police, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy Rue.
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