PHOENIX (CBS5) -
A Mexican national was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 25 years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to attempt to buy military grade weapons.
U.S. District Judge James A. Teilborg also ordered David Diaz-Sosa, 27, of Sinaloa, Mexico, to five years supervised release once his prison term is up.
Diaz-Sosa pleaded guilty on April 19, 2011, to all four counts of the superseding indictment, which are, conspiracy to acquire and export an anti-aircraft missile; conspiracy to possess unregistered firearms (machine guns) and transfer firearms for use in a drug trafficking crime; conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine; and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. In imposing the sentence,
Teilborg called the offenses an "evil enterprise" that, "carried out to its ultimate conclusion, "would put serious weapons in the hands of "bloodthirsty, ruthless, and savage gang members."
He said the operation not only delivered a financial blow to a Mexican drug trafficking organization, but it also "prevented further cartel violence by keeping dangerous weapons out of their hands."
In late 2009, Diaz-Sosa, a weapons and narcotics broker, began negotiating the purchase of high-powered, military-grade weapons for the Sinaloa Drug Cartel, the oldest and largest of the Mexican drug cartels, according to court documents.
Shortly after the weapons negotiations began, Diaz-Sosa arranged for the delivery of 4.5 pounds of methamphetamine to serve as a down payment for the weapons. A co-conspirator, Emilia Palomino-Robles, made that initial delivery on behalf of Diaz-Sosa.
For roughly the next three months, Diaz-Sosa and his associates negotiated with undercover federal agents for the purchase of the following weapons:
- A Dragon Fire anti-tank weapon
- Two AT-4s (an 84-mm unguided, portable, single-shot recoilless smoothbore weapon)
- A Law Rocket (a Light Anti-Tank Weapon)
- A Stinger Missile (a portable infrared homing anti-aircraft surface-to-air missile)
- Two Def Tech grenade launchers and a dozen 40 mm grenades
- One M-60 machine gun
- One .30-caliber machine gun
- Three cases of hand grenades.
As negotiations continued, Diaz-Sosa and his associates agreed to exchange both cash and methamphetamine as a final payment for the weapons.
On Feb. 17, 2010, Diaz-Sosa arrived at a pre-determined time and location to finalize the weapons exchange. After a brief conversation, and an exchange of over 11 pounds of methamphetamine, Diaz-Sosa and another associate were taken into custody by federal agents.
Later that same evening, Palomino-Robles was arrested in possession of $139,900, which was determined to be an additional portion of the weapons payment.
On March 5, 2012, Palomino-Robles was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, to be followed by five years supervised release, for her role in the methamphetamine and weapons conspiracy.
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