Opinion ID: 3002707
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Drug Busts

Text: Near the beginning of 2003, the Drug Enforcement Administration began investigating the Saucedo organization after the DEA’s Colorado Springs office intercepted phone conversations of a known money carrier, who revealed that he was making a trip to Chicago to pick up Nos. 06-1754, 06-2380 & 06-2821 5 anywhere from $1 million to $2 million. The DEA’s Chicago office took over the investigation in mid-2003. During the course of the investigation, the DEA obtained permission to wiretap multiple telephone numbers associated with members of the Saucedo organization. Among these telephone numbers was a prepaid cellular phone used by Jesus Herrera. Herrera testified that he communicated with Navar and Thomas primarily via prepaid phones referred to as “throwaways,” which allowed users to avoid providing identifying information associated with a regular cellular phone account and, at least theoretically, to avoid wiretaps. Herrera’s efforts to evade a wiretap were unsuccessful. Between August 1 and September 15, 2003, the DEA recorded approximately 530 telephone calls on Herrera’s number. Of these, the government introduced as evidence at trial sixty-five conversations related to drug transactions: thirty-nine calls between Herrera and Navar, and twenty-six calls between Herrera and Thomas. The conversations revealed the details of various drug deals, most often communicated using code language. Herrera explained that they avoided the word cocaine but discussed quantities, the price per kilogram, their typical terms or “standing orders,” and meeting places for delivering the drugs. Based upon these conversations and additional surveillance, the DEA learned of an upcoming drug transaction involving Navar and Thomas. On September 2, 2003, Navar informed Herrera that cocaine was available, and Herrera reserved ten kilograms. Herrera called Thomas to 6 Nos. 06-1754, 06-2380 & 06-2821 inform him of the cocaine and coordinate an exchange for the next day. On September 3, Herrera confirmed the transaction with both Thomas and Navar. Just before noon, Thomas called Herrera’s courier, Tmiri, and the two arranged a meeting at a restaurant to exchange the money. DEA agents observed the exchange of a duffel bag and followed both Thomas and Tmiri when they departed. Tmiri proceeded to a White Hen Pantry, where he collected a package from a white minivan carrying two Hispanic men, and the two vehicles quickly separated and left. The minivan proceeded to what was later discovered to be a stash house; agents followed Tmiri’s car to an apartment on the west side of Chicago. At that point, Thomas reappeared, parked beside Tmiri, and removed a box from Tmiri’s trunk. Tmiri testified that Thomas took the box into the apartment building, which belonged to Thomas’s sister, and then both men drove away. Following this exchange, law enforcement stopped both Tmiri and Thomas. In Thomas’s Cadillac Escalade, agents discovered a loaded semiautomatic handgun, two plastic bags containing cocaine, and approximately $23,500 in cash. Investigators later learned that Thomas had repeatedly deposited proceeds into four different bank accounts in amounts just below $10,000, to avoid bank disclosure rules. An IRS Special Agent testified at trial that agents also discovered $498,500 cash in Thomas’s safe deposit box, $87,000 in three separate hiding places in Thomas’s home, a .357 Magnum, a .9mm handgun, a money- counting machine, and documents that appeared to be drug ledgers. Nos. 06-1754, 06-2380 & 06-2821 7 The DEA continued to monitor phone calls between Navar and Herrera. The next day, September 4, Herrera informed Navar that they “had a problem with the dogs,” which he explained at trial meant the police. Herrera suggested that they move their drugs to another location. Law enforcement followed the trail, and on September 15, agents stopped a white van leaving the new location with 21 kilograms of cocaine. A search of the stash house revealed over 500 kilograms of cocaine hidden in the floorboards and the attic, as well as weapons, equipment for pressing and packaging cocaine, and a drug ledger. The DEA arrested Herrera, who provided information about “the Doctor” that led to Navar’s identification and arrest. Herrera also identified Navar’s voice on a number of the recorded calls between him and Navar. On April 1, 2004, a grand jury indicted eleven individuals who were involved in the conspiracy to distribute drugs for the Saucedo organization. The indictment charged Armando Navar with conspiracy to distribute cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846, distribution of more than five kilograms of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), and three counts of using a communication facility during a felony in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 843(b). The indictment charged Thomas with the same conspiracy to distribute cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846 and a number of other related counts. On September 20, 2005, a jury trial began in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Prior to trial, Herrera and Tmiri accepted plea agreements and agreed to testify against Navar and Thomas. The 8 Nos. 06-1754, 06-2380 & 06-2821 government also called law enforcement agents involved in the investigation. On October 3, 2005, a jury found both defendants guilty of each count of the indictment. On May 9, 2006, the district court sentenced Navar to 324 months’ confinement; on June 16, 2006, Thomas received 360 months. Both filed timely notices of appeal, and we consolidated their appeals.