MCALLEN,
Texas — A former South Texas police officer was sentenced on Thursday to 20 years in federal prison
following his cocaine-trafficking conviction in March.
This
sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick, Southern District of
Texas. This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s
(ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), in coordination with the U.S.
Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) under
the umbrella of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).
“This sentence serves
as a sobering reminder about the serious consequences for those who violate the
public’s trust,” said Shane Folden, special agent in charge, Homeland Security
Investigations (HSI San Antonio. “HSI will continue to work closely with our
law enforcement partners to target and investigate those who exploit their
positions for financial gain.”
On
July 18, U.S. District Judge Randy Crane ordered Geovani Hernandez, 45, from
Weslaco, Texas, to serve 240 months in prison to be followed by five years of
supervised release. At the hearing, the court noted the evidence against
Hernandez was overwhelming. In imposing the sentence, the court ruled Hernandez
abused his position of trust to facilitate the drug trafficking offense and
obstructed justice when he attempted to intimidate both the case agent and
confidential informant to prevent them from testifying at trial. Hernandez was
convicted March 7 on two counts of aiding and abetting and attempting to possess
with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine. (read the rest here)
