Mexican man sentenced to 3 years in federal prison for his role in the largest marijuana grow field discovered in South Texas
More than 9,000 marijuana plants were discovered
BROWNSVILLE, Texas — The last defendant responsible for the largest marijuana grow field in south Texas was sentenced Tuesday to three years in federal prison following his conviction for manufacturing marijuana.
The U.S. Attorney, Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas, announced this sentence. This investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
U.S. District Judge Andrew S. Hanen sentenced Miguel Echevarria-Guizar, 22, from Mexico to 36 months in federal prison. His father Miguel Echevarria-Zuniga, 51, also from Mexico, was sentenced in August to serve 42 months for the marijuana charge and for re-entering the United States after having been deported. Both men pleaded guilty to the charges April 3, 2014. They are expected to be placed in removal proceedings after they are released from prison.
According to court documents, the convictions stem from an August 2014 HSI-led alien smuggling investigation which revealed that part of a 40-acre tract of land in a rural area of Willacy County, Texas, was being used to grow marijuana. HSI special agents discovered more than 9,000 marijuana plants growing in the field.
HSI arrested the Echevarrias, both Mexican citizens, as they attempted to abscond from the area. Initially, the Echevarrias denied any involvement with the marijuana field and claimed to be part of a group of illegal aliens that were being housed in a different part of the land. However, fingerprint analysis linked both defendants to items found in the marijuana field. HSI searched a storage shed which was rented by Echevarria-Zuniga and found sales receipts for items found in the marijuana field.
Both men remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Israel Cano III and David A. Coronado, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted this case.
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