Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Marine Veteran Gets 12 Years for Smuggling Meth, Fentanyl, Other Drugs from Mexico
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 2 years ago on
April 24, 2023

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

A former Marine who for years helped smuggle drugs from Mexico into the United States and even tried to get a song written to glorify his exploits was sentenced Friday to 12 years in federal prison.

Roberto Salazar II, 26, of San Diego was sentenced for importing fentanyl and for conspiracy to distribute heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney’s office.

Salazar, who pleaded guilty last October, could have faced up to life in prison.

He was stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego. Prosecutors said that before joining the corps and while on active duty, he and couriers he recruited made dozens of smuggling trips across the border.

Salazar would obtain cars that were driven to Mexico, where drugs were loaded into the engine compartments. Couriers would then drive them back across the border into the U.S., prosecutors said.

The scheme began around 2015, authorities said.

By the time of his arrest last year, “Salazar had become so involved in drug trafficking that he was commissioning a Mexican songwriter to write a drug ballad known as a ‘narcocorrido about him,” the U.S. attorney’s office said.

“In one line that Salazar suggested to the songwriter, he boasted: ‘I wanted to study and became a soldier, but I liked the fast life better,’” the office said.

Some of the couriers recruited by Salazar were former Marines or classmates at Southwestern College in Chula Vista.

“This case involved a Marine who was supposed to protect and defend our country, but instead brought great harm to Americans by trafficking fentanyl and other dangerous drugs,” U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman said. “He also betrayed his solemn oath by recruiting other Marines to do the same.”

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

UP NEXT

Suspect in Minnesota Lawmaker Killing Visited Other Legislators’ Homes, Prosecutors Say

Inside Trump’s Extraordinary Turnaround on Immigration Raids

7 hours ago

Trump Approval Steady at 42%, Support Weakens for His Immigration Policy, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

7 hours ago

Madera County Wildfire Prompts Evacuation Warnings, Road Closures

A wildfire burning near Raymond Road and Avenue 16 in Madera County has prompted evacuation warnings and road closures, authorities said Mon...

5 hours ago

A wildfire near Raymond Road and Avenue 16 in Madera County has prompted evacuation warnings and road closures as officials urge residents to prepare to leave if threatened on Monday, June 16, 2025. (Madera County SO)
5 hours ago

Madera County Wildfire Prompts Evacuation Warnings, Road Closures

Sanger police are searching for Kaylani Thompson, 17, who went missing Saturday, June 14, 2025, after leaving her home and was last seen getting into a white sedan. (Sanger PD)
5 hours ago

Sanger Police Seek Public’s Help to Find Missing Teen

A view of the cityscape in the aftermath of Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, June 16, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
6 hours ago

Trump Says Everyone Should Immediately Evacuate Tehran

7 hours ago

Inside Trump’s Extraordinary Turnaround on Immigration Raids

President Donald Trump speaks at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
7 hours ago

Trump Approval Steady at 42%, Support Weakens for His Immigration Policy, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

A person was rescued from a Fresno canal Monday, June 16, 2025, near Dakota and Ninth Street, marking the third such incident in recent days, officials said. (Fresno FD)
7 hours ago

Person Rescued from Fresno Canal, Third Incident in Recent Days

7 hours ago

Arias Dodges Questions About His False Fresno ICE Raid Claim

9 hours ago

Iranian State TV Halts Live Broadcast After Israeli Strike

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend