MAN GETS 151-MONTH SENTENCE IN POT CASE

An undocumented El Salvadoran man from Downey, California was sentenced by
United States District Judge Keith P. Ellison for possession of marijuana
with intent to distribute.

According to reports, the court adjudged a penalty of 151 months
imprisonment, which is to be followed by a five-year period of supervised
release.

Luis Adonay Rivas, with the alias Anibal Cabrera-Piris, drove a
tractor-trailer into the United States Border Patrol checkpoint on I-35, 15
miles north of Laredo, where a canine alerted agents of a possible load of
narcotics in the trailer.

As Border Patrol agents opened the trailer they discovered a load of
tissue, napkins and expired tostadas.

The tractor-trailer was immediately placed under X-ray scan which revealed
two hidden compartments at the front of the trailer containing 388 bundles
of marijuana weighing 6,012 pounds.

An Investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration revealed that the
bundles were headed for Los Angeles.

Estimated street value for the load was $4,080,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dixie Morrow and Noelle DiMarco prosecuted the case.