U.S. District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez sentenced Hector Mejia-Patino, 26, of St. Thomas, to 67 months of incarceration, five years of supervised release, and a $100 fine, Thursday, as part of a plea agreement, according to the V.I. U.S. Attorney’s Office.
According to the plea agreement, Mejia-Patino admits he participated in several telephone conversations and exchanged text messages with an undercover agent between June through September of 2013, to try to sell multiple kilograms of cocaine.
During one of those conversations, Mejia-Patino agreed to introduce the undercover agent to his co-conspirator to facilitate the drug transaction because Mejia-Patino was out of the territory at the time. The undercover agent traveled to St. Thomas and met with Mejia-Patino’s co-conspirators at the Crown Bay Marina. Before the drug transaction was completed, the co-conspirators were arrested for possessing 11 kilograms of cocaine.
Mejia-Patino was arrested for his role in this offense on Jan. 10. He pleaded guilty on April 3 to one count of conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.
