A former congressman from Guatemala has been sentenced to 18 years in federal prison for his involvement in an international drug trafficking operation, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin, Jr. of the Eastern District of Texas.
Jose Armando Ubico Aguilar, 45, pleaded guilty to participating in the conspiracy and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael Truncale on February 11, 2025.
Ubico Aguilar, who served as an elected member of the Congress of the Republic of Guatemala from 2016 to 2024 and as President of the National Defense Committee from 2018 to 2023, was accused of facilitating the trafficking of cocaine into the U.S.
“The sentencing of this corrupt Guatemalan official who brokered and facilitated cocaine shipments into the United States while betraying his country through his partnerships with known drug traffickers and other corrupt officials shows the commitment of the Eastern District of Texas United States Attorney’s Office to identify, disrupt, and dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin, Jr.
“I am grateful to our law enforcement partners who worked tirelessly to ensure that Ubico Aguilar will no longer be allowed to hide behind his position of power,” McGlothin continued.
“The sentencing of this corrupt official who brokered and facilitated cocaine shipments into the United States sends a message to Transnational Criminal Organizations across the world that they will be held responsible for the poison they distribute into the United States,” said Dallas DEA Special Agent in Charge Eduardo A. Chávez. “This sentence reflects our continued resolve to partner with our international law-enforcement counterparts to fight greed, violence, and public corruption.”
In his guilty plea, Ubico Aguilar admitted his role in the conspiracy, including relaying drug-related information and U.S. currency to another Guatemalan official on behalf of an international drug trafficker. These actions resulted in the safe passage of at least 450 kilograms of cocaine through Guatemala for distribution in the United States.
This case was investigated by the North Texas Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (“OCDETF”) Strike Force Group Two; the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Division; the DEA’s Guatemala City Country Office and the DEA’s San Jose (Costa Rica) Country Office; the FBI’s Dallas Field Office; the Homeland Security Investigation’s Dallas and Guatemala Field Offices; the U.S. Marshals Service’s Dallas Field Office; and Customs and Border Protection’s San Diego Field Office. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs of the Department’s Criminal Division also provided significant assistance in securing the surrender of Ubico Aguilar.
