Source: Office of United States Attorneys
McALLEN, Texas – A 19-year-old Alamo resident has been sentenced for utilizing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking activity, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J Ganjei.
Emiliano Cabriales pleaded guilty Dec. 5, 2024.
U.S. District Judge Drew B. Tipton has now handed Cabriales a 60-month term of imprisonment immediately followed by three years of supervised release.
On May 29, 2024, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle in which Cabriales was a passenger. During a routine search, they discovered a firearm concealed beneath the seat where Cabriales had been sitting.
Further investigation revealed 14 grams of cocaine, packaged in individual baggies, hidden inside his pants. Cabriales admitted to possessing the cocaine and that he had the firearm in case he had to protect himself and the drugs.
Cabriales has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Alamo Police Department conducted the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Cahal P. McColgan prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.