Opinion ID: 539182
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Johana Torrez

Text: 85 Johana Torrez was found on the first floor of the farmhouse, not in the basement, and there was no evidence that her body or clothing bore charcoal dust. Nonetheless, we are not persuaded that the evidence as to her showed merely presence. 86 There was evidence, inter alia, that Johana prepared the meals for the men who processed the cocaine. In addition, there was evidence from which the jury could infer that Johana made the cheesecloth packets that were used for leaching the cocaine out of the charcoal. When the agents arrived, Johana was found in the living room standing next to a sewing machine in which the stitching of a cheesecloth packet was in progress. On the table with the sewing machine was a large roll of cheesecloth and several completed cheesecloth packets, suggesting that the packet in progress was just one of many being created. The inference that the sewing was being done by Johana was permissible from the fact that the other two defendants found on the first floor were not near the sewing table. Villegas had just returned to the farm from grocery shopping; Valbuena was hiding in a shower. In any event, Valbuena was covered with charcoal dust, and we have seen no suggestion in the record that there was any charcoal dust on the cheesecloth being sewn. The jury was entitled to infer that the arrival of the agents had interrupted the sewing of a cheesecloth packet, that that project was part of the ongoing preparation of essential supplies for the manufacturing operation, and that Johana had been the sewer. 87 There was also ample evidence that Johana must have been aware of the nature of the operations at Johnnycake farm. Though the setting was rural and remote, there was a pervasive smell of chemicals. Cocaine and narcotics paraphernalia were scattered throughout the house. Further, seven kilograms of cocaine were being dried in the second-floor closet in which a woman's clothes were found. Johana was the only woman at the farm at the time. Though there was another upstairs closet, there was no evidence that any narcotics-related items were found in it. From the selection of Johana's closet as a preferred location for the final drying of the cocaine, it could easily be inferred that Johana was a trusted member of the conspiracy. 88 In sum, the jury could reasonably have inferred that Johana Torrez knowingly participated in the cocaine manufacturing operation by providing meals for the workers, making leaching bags for the charcoal, and using her closet for the drying of the processed cocaine. We conclude that the evidence was sufficient to support her conviction. 89