MCALLEN, Texas — A former law enforcement officer and political candidate previously convicted of using his badge to move more than $40 million for Mexican drug cartels has been sentenced to 12 years in prison.
On Wednesday morning, former Hidalgo County Constable candidate and former sheriff’s deputy Robert Maldonado went before U.S. District Judge Randy Crane who handed down a 144 month sentence for the money laundering conspiracy charge.
Maldonado had previously pleaded guilty to the charge in May and had been out on bond following his arrest by federal agents.
Court records obtained by Breitbart-Texas show that from 2001 until the time of his arrest in 2013 Maldonado made more than 120 trips from the Texas Border to various northern cities in order to smuggle south various bulk cash amounts from which he took a percentage.
During the hearing Judge Crane placed the amount that Maldonado helped transport at approximately $40 million.
News of Maldonado’s activities first surfaced in 2012 at around the time when he was running for constable when a Texas State trooper pulled him over along U.S. Highway 59 near Victoria and a police K-9 pointed the cop to the trunk of Maldonado’s Chrysler 200 sedan. Inside, authorities found and seized $1,068,930 in bundles.
Right after his arrest, federal agents raided Maldonado’s mansion north of Mercedes. At the home authorities found various exotic animals, including bison, kangaroos and snakes.
Follow Ildefonso Ortiz on Twitter @ildefonsoortiz
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