Three Mexican nationals were sentenced for their involvement in a major drug trafficking conspiracy worth $4.7 million, which distributed over 335.5 kilograms of methamphetamine and more than 22 kilograms of heroin across the Kansas City region, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri announced on Friday.
Jesus Morales-Garcia, also known as “Don Jesus,” 46, received a sentence of 18 years in federal prison without the possibility of parole. Morales-Garcia admitted to being a key figure in the drug-trafficking operation that transported large amounts of drugs from Mexico into Kansas City.
Morales-Garcia pleaded guilty on August 28, 2024, to participating in a continuing criminal enterprise, conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and heroin, and illegally reentering the U.S. after deportation.
Co-defendants Santiago Raul Mendieta-Sanchez, 43, and Baltazar Flores-Norzagaray, 53, were also sentenced for their roles. Mendieta-Sanchez received a 7-year federal prison sentence without parole. Flores-Norzagaray was sentenced to 16 years and 3 months after being found in possession of illegal firearms and selling methamphetamine to a confidential informant.
The conspiracy was uncovered during a significant law enforcement operation on June 8, 2022, led by Homeland Security Investigations. The operation included 140 officers and agents from multiple law enforcement agencies, resulting in the execution of 16 search warrants and the seizure of large quantities of illegal substances, including 84.4 kilograms of methamphetamine, 4.5 kilograms of heroin, 10.4 kilograms of fentanyl, 7.6 kilograms of cocaine, and 10.5 kilograms of marijuana. Officers also confiscated firearms, Xanax pills, and a liquid methamphetamine conversion lab.
This conviction marks another significant step in dismantling a dangerous drug-trafficking network in the Kansas City area.
