Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Jesus Manual Hernandez, 33, of Charlotte, was sentenced today to 151 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for trafficking methamphetamine, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
According to court documents and court proceedings, from March 2021 to September 2022, Hernandez and his co-defendant, Wilber Guadalupe Baldenebro Medina, engaged in conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in the greater Charlotte area. Court documents show that during the investigation into Hernandez’s drug distribution activities, law enforcement utilized confidential human sources to purchase more than 2.2 kilograms of methamphetamine. In addition to distributing methamphetamine in Charlotte, court records indicate that Hernandez organized the distribution of 190 grams of fentanyl pills and 198 grams of powder fentanyl in Montgomery, Alabama.
On November 30, 2023, Hernandez pleaded guilty to methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy and distribution of methamphetamine. He remains in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.
On September 27, 2023, Medina was sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine and distribution of methamphetamine.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their investigation of this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation.
OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Erik Lindahl of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case.