Rodolfo Maldonado-Bustos, also known as Don Jose, and Euclides Camacho-Goicochea, also known as El Quilles, both leaders in the La Nueva Familia Michoacana drug cartel, have been charged by a federal grand jury with conspiracy to possess and distribute heroin and conspiracy to import heroin into the United States.
Earlier Thursday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) announced financial sanctions against Camacho-Goicochea and Maldonado-Bustos, who are fugitives believed to be residing in Mexico.
The Defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
“Denying drug cartels the profits earned from distributing poison in our communities is an essential tool in DEA’s efforts to combat these drug cartels,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert J. Murphy of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Atlanta Field Division. “DEA Atlanta will continue to attack the La Nueva Familia cartel on all fronts by arresting its members, as well as seizing their drugs and assets.”
According to court documents, in September 2016, the DEA and IRS-CI started investigating the La Nueva Familia Michoacana cartel, which was importing heroin, cocaine, and marijuana into the U.S., including Georgia. The investigation identified Rodolfo Maldonado-Bustos as a key member who coordinated heroin production in Mexico.
Maldonado-Bustos allegedly oversaw opium harvesting, processing it into heroin, and supplying it to Euclides Camacho-Goicochea and others for distribution in U.S. cities like Atlanta and Houston.
Camacho-Goicochea allegedly managed the return of drug proceeds to Mexico. In early 2017, agents seized over $580,000 in drug money from vehicles and homes in Atlanta, intended for the carte
Rodolfo Maldonado-Bustos, also known as Don Jose, 59, and Euclides Camacho-Goicochea, also known as El Quilles, 51, both from Guerrero, Mexico, have been charged with conspiracy to possess and distribute heroin, and conspiracy to import heroin into the United States. Additionally, Camacho-Goicochea faces charges of conspiracy to launder money. The indictments, returned in August 2017, were recently unsealed.
The DEA and IRS-CI investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebeca Ojeda for the Northern District of Georgia is prosecuting the case against Camacho-Goicochea and Maldonado-Bustos.