The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announced on Friday that Gorazd Filimonovic and Gasper Urbanc were sentenced to 10 years and 13 years in prison, respectively, for their roles in conspiring to import hundreds of kilograms of heroin into the United States.
Filimonovic and Urbanc, both Slovenian nationals, were involved in the trafficking operation from at least November 2020 to April 2021. According to court documents, the duo conspired to distribute large quantities of heroin from Austria and other European locations into the U.S.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) had been investigating Filimonovic, Urbanc, and their associates since 2019. During this period, a DEA confidential source identified Urbanc as a major international cocaine trafficker and logistics manager for a drug trafficking organization.
The group, including Filimonovic and Urbanc, negotiated drug purchases in a series of meetings and communications with confidential sources. They discussed trafficking routes and strategies to evade law enforcement, meeting in countries such as the Czech Republic, Croatia, Slovenia, and Colombia to coordinate shipments.
By early 2021, the conspiracy shifted its focus to heroin shipments. Filimonovic and Urbanc agreed to supply high-quality heroin, with a plan to have it flown from Austria to New York for distribution in the U.S. They agreed to deliver up to 135 kilograms of heroin in exchange for approximately €2.6 million (about $3.1 million).
The two men were arrested in Croatia on May 21, 2021, and have now been sentenced for their roles in the international drug trafficking operation.
