Four Individuals Indicted for Role in Drug Distribution Conspiracies

A federal indictment was unsealed today in San Antonio, Texas, charging four individuals for their roles in a cocaine distribution conspiracy, announced the Department of Justice.

Jesus Armando Chavez, 40, and Michelle Chavez, 35, both of Del Rio, Texas; Jose Luis Balderas, 29, of Eagle Pass, Texas; and Javier Hernandez, 31, of San Antonio, are charged in a 14-count indictment unsealed today in the Western District of Texas with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and possession with intent to distribute cocaine.  On March 2, the defendants were arrested and appeared for their initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge John W. Primomo in San Antonio.

According to the indictment, between August 2014 and May 2016, the defendants allegedly knowingly and intentionally conspired with each other to possess and distribute narcotics, including cocaine, in the Western District of Texas.

The defendants face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, if convicted on the charges.

An indictment is merely an allegation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Immigration And Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the Texas Department of Public Safety investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlie Strauss for the United States is prosecuting the case.