McALLEN, Texas (KVEO) – A former police officer accused of smuggling marijuana through South Texas has turned himself in after more than 13 years on the run.
José Omar García and his brother, Roel Roberto García, were once police officers in Rome along the Texas-Mexico border.
In 2010, they, along with their father, were arrested by the DEA during a task force investigation dubbed “Operation X-Men.” The investigation focused on “Mexican drug cartel infrastructure and transportation cells throughout the United States, with special emphasis on the southwest border,” according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas published in September 2010.
The brothers allegedly participated in a conspiracy involving more than 2,200 pounds of marijuana.
The former gypsy police officer José Omar García. (Image courtesy of the US Drug Enforcement Administration)
The former gypsy police officer Roel Roberto García. (Image courtesy of the US Drug Enforcement Administration)
However, after being arrested, the García brothers posted bail and allegedly fled to Mexico.
José García, now in his 40s, turned himself in on Monday after more than 13 years on the run.
During a hearing Wednesday, with his family watching from the gallery, José García appeared before federal Judge Nadia S. Medrano.
Dressed in blue jeans and a blue shirt, Garcia sat quietly for several hearings before his case was called. At one point, he appeared to wink at someone in the gallery.
Garcia’s attorney told Medrano that his client’s brother, Roel Roberto Garcia, and his client’s father, Roel Garcia, also planned to turn themselves in.
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Both the federal prosecutor and José García’s lawyer said the handover had been in the works for some time, but no additional details were released.
Medrano set Garcia’s bail at $100,000 with a $7,500 cash deposit. He could use the money he deposited in November 2010 before fleeing the country to post bail, Medrano said, because that money apparently was not confiscated.
While on bail, Garcia must remain at his home in Rome. He must undergo GPS tracking and will not be able to leave the house without permission.
If convicted, José García faces a minimum of 10 years in federal prison.
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