Following the rising cases of drug trafficking in and around Birmingham, the federal police have taken to arms to indict all possible drug suspects within the geographical boundaries of this area (Wallace, H., & Roberson, C. (2009). The bureau initiated a home-to-home manhunt of the suspected drug traffickers who mostly are illegal immigrants from Latin American countries.
This manhunt bore fruits on June 2, 2012, when the federal police arrested an illegal immigrant from Colombia who was in possession of 200 grams of cocaine and 100 grams of methamphetamine. The man whose name is Castillo Don is said to have smuggled the drugs through the Mexican American border and had intentions of selling the same to some unnamed drug traffickers who have since gone under. Castillo who also had an illegal firearm a.22 caliber pistol was in the company of two women who were also arrested and are set to be prosecuted in court this week.
Castillo will be charged with several crimes which will include the illegal possession of a firearm, the possession of illegal substances in terms of drugs with an intention of distributing them and being in the country without proper documentation. This is after being deported back to Colombia two months earlier. These charges carry a very heavy sentence with possession of illegal drugs with an intention to distribute carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a fine of not less than $10 million. The possession of an unlicensed firearm and being an undocumented immigrant for that matter could see Castillo face 10 more years in custody. This means that either way, Castillo is going to serve a very long term in jail.
The two women who have so far been established as Mariana and Anna will also be facing double charges. They were in the country illegally which could see them face at least 10 years in prison and also had the intention of distributing drugs which could see them face a prison term of not less than 40 years in prison. These prison terms are set to run consecutively and thus could see the two women serving a very long term in prison.
The federal police have further established through their investigation that the two women have been involved in the distribution of cocaine for the last two years. This could see them, therefore, serve a prison term of up to 70 years in prison.
The federal bureau of investigation has although issued a warning that these cases are on the rise and that the country might not have enough space or money to host the number of the ever-increasing criminals in the American prison systems. The bureau has suggested that the American government coalesce with other countries in the region to have these criminals indicated in their respective countries to ease off the burden. This though will be a tricky affair as the laws of the respective countries may not conform to the federal laws in America. Either way, the government will come with a way of having these criminals in jail without imposing a very heavy tax burden on the American taxpayers.
For further information on this issue and others to do with drug smuggling and trafficking, visit the FBI website.
References
Federal Bureau of Investigations. Web.
Wallace, H., & Roberson, C. (2009). Written and interpersonal communication: Methods for law enforcement. (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.