Colombian sentenced for second time in drug-trafficking exploit on the high seas – The San Diego Union-Tribune

A Colombian man who was interdicted at sea in a semi-submersible vessel loaded with cocaine was sentenced in San Diego federal court earlier this week to more than 16 years in prison.

It was the second time in less than five years that Jose Rosario Segura Balentierra, 35, had been sentenced for nearly the same crime.

The Coast Guard, which has increasingly patrolled the Eastern Pacific for cocaine traffickers, found the vessel on Aug. 14, 2020, more than 500 nautical miles from Central America, according to court records.

Segura and three others failed to stop for the Coast Guard cutter, prompting the Coast Guard to fire warning shots, then disabling shots to stop the engines. When that didnt work, an officer jumped on board the moving vessel and was able to gain control of the engines, authorities said. The officer removed the fuel lines, ultimately stopping the semi-submersible.

Officers discovered about 4,400 pounds of cocaine on board, worth over $35 million, prosecutors said.

Bundles of cocaine are seen stacked inside a semi-submersible that the Coast Guard seized off the coast of Central America in 2020.

(Courtesy of U.S. Attorneys Office)

The semi-submersible was also filled with a few feet of water at the bottom, indicating the crew tried to sink the vessel to avoid seizure, prosecutors said.

Segura pleaded guilty in July to possession of cocaine with intent to distribute on board a vessel and operation of a semi-submersible vessel without nationality.

He had been convicted for offenses involving a semi-submersible in Florida in 2016, after the Coast Guard found him on a similar vessel about 300 nautical miles from Mexico. That vessel sank, and no drugs were recovered.

He was sentenced to 41 months in custody. After serving his term he was deported to Colombia, then arrested 18 months later.

He was sentenced Tuesday to 182 months in the San Diego case and another 18 months for violating the terms of his supervised release in the Florida case.

Also Tuesday, his three co-defendants were each sentenced to 100 months in prison.

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Colombian sentenced for second time in drug-trafficking exploit on the high seas - The San Diego Union-Tribune