Thread: Admitted drug smuggler pleads guilty

April 17, 2008, 6:49PM
Admitted drug smuggler pleads guilty


By ALICIA A. CALDWELL Associated Press Writer
© 2008 The Associated Press

EL PASO, Texas — A man shot by a pair of former U.S. Border Patrol agents has pleaded guilty to federal drug smuggling charges, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Thursday.

Osvaldo Aldrete Davila, 27, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance, and one count each of conspiracy to import a controlled substance and conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with intent to distribute.

Aldrete, who was shot by former agents Jose Alonso Compean and Ignacio Ramos in February 2005 during a failed marijuana smuggling effort, was indicted in 2007 on charges that he smuggled drugs again several months after being shot.

Aldrete, who was granted immunity and testified against the agents in 2006, admitted his role in the initial smuggling attempt of about 700 pounds of marijuana.

During the former agents' 2006 trial, jurors did not hear testimony about the later smuggling operations, which occurred in September and October 2005.

Lawyers for Ramos and Compean raised the issue during an appeal at the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans in December.

Ramos and Compean were each sentenced to more than a decade in prison for shooting Aldrete and lying about it. Both men have been in prison since January 2007.

The case against the agents sparked widespread outrage among conservatives who argued that U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton should have focused the resources of his office on Aldrete and not the agents.

In a written statement released by Sutton's office, he once again defended his decision to prosecute Ramos and Compean.

"I have repeatedly said that if we obtained sufficient competent and admissible evidence against Aldrete, we would prosecute him. I fulfilled that promise when the DEA arrested Aldrete on an indictment charging him with federal drug smuggling," Sutton said the in the statement. "Today, Aldrete pleaded guilty to that indictment. Just as Aldrete's illegal conduct did not excuse the crimes committed by Compean and Ramos, likewise, their crimes did not excuse his.

Ramos' father-in-law, Joe Loya, said the guilty plea was welcome news and a development that he believes solidifies supporters' beliefs that the case against the former agents was flawed.

"It's another step into getting our agents vindicated, out of prison certainly," said Loya, who attended Aldrete's afternoon hearing. "I don't know what kind of impact it's going to have on the appeal, but it proves that the government lied to the jury."

Loya said prosecutors lied when they didn't tell jurors about suspicions of Aldrete's involvement in other smuggling attempts.

Supporters of the agents, including a host of members of Congress, have called on President Bush to pardon the agents or at least commute their sentences.

Thursday U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, renewed that call.

"In my view, this guilty plea opens even more questions than it answers," Cornyn said in a statement. "As I said last year, it is incomprehensible to me that an illegal alien drug smuggler was allowed to violate his immunity agreement, perjure himself and be granted a series of unlimited visas to roam free in our country while two border patrol agents were given excessive prison sentences.

"It is well past time for the President to do the right thing and commute their sentences."

Aldrete, who has been jailed since his arrest in October, is scheduled to be sentenced July 16. He faces up to 40 years in prison and a $2 million fine.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/5710593.html

http://www.elpasotimes.com/newupdated/ci_8962341
(something new on the el paso paper website, you can now leave comments on the story)

Man who was shot by Border Patrol agents pleads guilty to drug smuggling
By Daniel Borunda / El Paso Times
Article Launched: 04/17/2008 05:01:28 PM MDT

An undocumented immigrant in the center of the case of a pair of imprisoned former U.S. Border Patrol agents pleaded guilty to drug smuggling on Thursday at U.S. District court in El Paso.

Osvaldo Aldrete Davila pleaded guilty to smuggling marijuana. He will be sentenced in July. (Lou Dobbs reported its July 16)

Former agents Jose Alonso Compean and Ignacio Ramos are serving prison terms after being for shooting Aldrete from behind while he running back to Mexico in 2005. Ramos and Compean were convicted of violating Aldrete's civil rights and of tampering with evidence because they did not report the shooting and because Compean picked up his shell casings.

"I have repeatedly said that if we obtained sufficient competent and admissible evidence against Aldrete, we would prosecute him," U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton said Thursday in a news release. "I fulfilled that promise when the DEA arrested Aldrete on an indictment charging him with federal drug smuggling. Today, Aldrete pleaded guilty to that indictment. Just as Aldrete's illegal conduct did not excuse the crimes committed by Compean and Ramos, likewise, their crimes did not excuse his. Compean and Ramos had their day in court and an El Paso jury convicted them after a two and half week long jury trial. Now, Aldrete has had his day in court and will soon be paying for his crimes."

If not mistaken, I believe the U.S. government provided a vehicle and an immunity border pass for Osvaldo Aldrete Davila to use when he traveled from Mexico to the United States for (free) medical treatment.

Was it during one of those trips he smuggled in more drugs?

Originally Posted by MyAmerica

If not mistaken, I believe the U.S. government provided a vehicle and an immunity border pass for Osvaldo Aldrete Davila to use when he traveled from Mexico to the United States for (free) medical treatment.

Was it during one of those trips he smuggled in more drugs?

actually between the time he was shot and the start of the trial he was arraigned on FOUR counts of smuggling and attempt to distribute
one in june and sept, and two in Oct. the 22 and 25

http://www.rogerhedgecock.com/cc-common/podcast.html

Thursday April 17th 5:00PM Podcast
UPDATE-NACHO RAMOS CASE:TARA SETMAYER, press secretary for Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA); Aldrete is expected to cop a plea to drug smuggling charges today & her visit with Nacho last Friday

FOLKS you have got to listen to this, Tara makes the claim that the US Government wanted a plea deal so that any of the information in relation to the Ramos and Compean case would not see the light of day.
Supposedly there was a girlfriend whose car Davila used to smuggle in drugs was set to testify against davila till she too got busted for smuggling.
She also claims that Sutton WANTED a quick plea and a deal in case he has to go back and try Ramos and Compean AGAIN if the fifth court of appeals overturns the verdict.

She also says that the Head of the prison bureau, harvey lappin has said that it would be hard to move the agents to a low rish prison because their faces are always in the news thanks to glenn bek, dobbs, and on the radio with roger hedgecock, and others. She called this a LAME EXCUSE

http://www.kfi640.com/pages/podcasting/

John and Ken podcasting for April 17th.
3PM hour, Davila guilty.
4PM Hour. MONICA RAMOS