Two brothers from Southern California have been sentenced to 24 years each in federal prison for running a heroin-delivery operation.
The brothers used code words like “taco” and “enchilada” to take phone orders from customers.
Driving the news: Julio Cesar Martinez, 45, and Victor Martinez, 46, were sentenced on Monday.
- They had previously pleaded guilty in August to conspiracy to distribute heroin, acknowledging that they distributed at least 64 pounds in Orange County.
- The operation ran from September 2003 to July 2021 and involved smuggling heroin from Mexico into the US by hiding it in couriers’ body cavities.
- Call centers operated out of workers’ homes, and customers used the names of Mexican foods to place drug orders.
- One customer died from a heroin overdose in Orange County in 2016.
- Other members of the ring deposited money in bank accounts in amounts of $10,000 or less to avoid federal reporting requirements.
