Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CAMILO ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ, a/k/a “Viejo,” was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer to 25 years in prison for trafficking at least 5,000 kilograms of cocaine. ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ previously pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “My Office is dedicated to holding drug kingpins like Enriquez-Nunez accountable. Thanks to our partners at the DEA and the prosecutors of this Office, more than one ton of cocaine was seized before it could hit the streets, and this top cocaine trafficker faces years in prison.”
According to the Superseding Indictment and statements made in court proceedings and filings:
From approximately 2019 through 2022, ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ was the leader of a drug trafficking organization that transported between 5,000 and 10,000 kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico to New York, New Jersey, and Florida. ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ laundered at least $10 million of proceeds from his drug trafficking organization and personally made millions of dollars in profits.
In September 2021, law enforcement agents seized a shipment of approximately 920 kilograms of cocaine that ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ had transported from Puerto Rico for distribution in the New York area.
In July 2022, law enforcement agents arrested ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ in Puerto Rico and seized approximately 338 kilograms of cocaine, $750,000 in drug proceeds, and four assault rifles belonging to him.
ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ has a prior federal cocaine trafficking conviction and engaged in this cocaine trafficking while on federal supervised release following his prior conviction.
While imposing today’s sentence, Judge Engelmayer described the conduct as drug trafficking on an “epic, steroidal level.”
In addition to the prison term, ENRIQUEZ-NUNEZ, 43, of Puerto Rico, was sentenced to five years of supervised release.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration. Mr. Williams also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico for their assistance in the case.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samuel P. Rothschild, Kevin Mead, and Marguerite B. Colson are in charge of the prosecution.
Read more at the Justice Department
