One of the DEA’s Most Wanted is currently sitting in a Texas jail for a federal drug trafficking trial after Mexican authorities extradited him. The man previously spent eight years in a foreign prison.
Known in the criminal world as “Cachitas,” Benjamin Valeriano Jr. aka Mario Hernandez Cazares was listed by the DEA as one of their “most wanted.” He sat in Mexican custody since 2012 until earlier this year. Valeriano is a U.S. citizen and, if convicted, could face 10-years to life in prison.
Federal court documents revealed that U.S. prosecutors obtained a series of sealed indictments against Valeriano and 35 other members of the “La Linea” faction of the Juarez Cartel in January 2012. A sealed indictment contains charges that are kept secret until the suspect is arrested.
Valeriano was described by Mexico City as a regional plaza boss for La Linea who operated out of the Ojinaga-Juarez area. He was considered an extremely dangerous individual, El Sol de Mexico reported.
Valeriano was originally arrested in Mexico City in July 2012 during a high-profile raid targeting the leadership structure of the Juarez Cartel, Noticieros Televisa reported at the time. He spent several years in a federal prison until his recent extradition.
Earlier this month, Valeriano went before a U.S. magistrate judge who ordered he be held without bond pending further hearings.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.