Two brothers busted for meth and heroin trafficking in 2018 were part of a scheme reportedly involving the cartel, feds revealed in court records.
SAN FRANCISCO — For the first time, federal authorities have publicly linked a 2018 drug investigation that yielded 37 pounds of methamphetamine to the infamous Sinaloa Cartel, court records show.
The criminal case involves two brothers, Jesus and Eduardo Salazar, who were arrested in 2018 after Jesus was identified as a large-scale drug trafficker in the Bay Area. Prosecutors arrested Jesus, of San Mateo, on two separate occasions; once on Interstate 5 with a shipment of 20 pounds meth, and another near Seattle with 17 pounds of meth. Five pounds of heroin was also recovered from Jesus.
Eduardo, an Arizona resident, barely played a role in the scheme at all; authorities had evidence he discussed setting up drug deals with his brother, but no evidence he actually obtained narcotics. Nonetheless, he was arrested and charged on the same federal case as his brother.
The sentences were also wildly different; Jesus was given 17.5 years in prison last year, and Eduardo was sentenced to time served — meaning he was freed from jail — last week, court records show.
In a sentencing memo for Eduardo’s case, though, prosecutors for the first time publicly revealed that Jesus was suspected of being part of a Sinaloa Cartel-led drug ring. The sentencing memo in Jesus’ case was filed under seal last year, and has never been made available to the public.
