A Los Angeles man has pleaded guilty to federal charges for trafficking large quantities of cocaine from California to the Pittsburgh area.
Jose Angel Sanchez, 33, admitted in a Pennsylvania federal court to conspiring to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine, the United States Department of Justice announced Thursday.
His plea comes after a monthslong investigation into a drug trafficking operation that spanned multiple states.
Between March and September 2022, federal investigators with the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, a federal drug enforcement program, tracked shipments of cocaine that Sanchez mailed from California to addresses in Pennsylvania, and later to his co-defendant in West Virginia.
After law enforcement intercepted a package containing 2 kilograms of cocaine bound for Pennsylvania, Sanchez allegedly changed his delivery location to the West Virginia residence of his co-defendant, Christopher Salgado.
Surveillance showed Salgado would then pick up Sanchez from the Pittsburgh International Airport and drive both him and the drug parcels to another co-defendant, Romaro Foster Sr., in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania.
In one instance, authorities stopped Salgado and Sanchez during a return trip to the airport. After releasing them, investigators observed Salgado discard a box in a fast food trash bin. The box had Salgado’s address and tested positive for cocaine residue, the DOJ said.
In total, law enforcement seized multiple parcels containing approximately 6 kilograms of cocaine between the two co-defendants. A search of Salgado’s home in August 2022 turned up another shipment from Sanchez with 2 more kilograms.
Sanchez faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and up to life, along with a fine of up to $10 million. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 2.
Salgado was previously sentenced to five years in prison for his role in the scheme.
