[LAREDO, TX] Zapata County Justice of the Peace Manuel Martinez and South Texas Violent Crimes Task Force (STVCTF) investigator Jose Amaro today pled guilty to federal charges arising out of an extortion scheme to provide protection for drug traffickers and their drug loads, United States Attorney Don DeGabrielle and Special Agent in Charge Ralph G. Diaz of the San Antonio office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced today.

At a hearing this morning before U. S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez, Manuel Martinez, 43, a former Zapata County Sheriff’s Deputy and presently a Justice of the Peace for Zapata County, pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Interfere with Commerce Under Color of Official Right or extortion, and now faces up to 20 years imprisonment and a fine of not more than $250,000. Jose Amaro, 40, a South Texas Violent Crimes Task Force (STVCTF) investigator, pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance, and faces no less than 10 years and a maximum of life imprisonment, and a fine of not more than $ 4 million. Zapata County Justice of the Peace Manuel Martinez, and STVCTF Investigator Jose Amaro, both of whom reside in Zapata, TX, will be sentenced on October 29, 2007, at 2:00 p.m. by Judge Alvarez.

Martinez was convicted of receiving money from drug traffickers in exchange for using his official position to insure the undetected passage of the drug traffickers and their drug shipments through Zapata County between June 2006 through November 2006. Martinez admitted to receiving four bribe payments – three in the amount of $5,000 each and a fourth in the amount of $5,500 – from purported drug traffickers between June 2006 and November 2006, to assist the drug traffickers and their drug loads to avoid detection and apprehension by law enforcement, and failing to make arrests or seize the contraband or the drug proceeds. Martinez admitted to recruiting and funneling money to Amaro to provide sensitive law enforcement information about Task Force operations and perform counter-surveillance to protect each of the four purported drug loads.

Today, Amaro admitted he had used his county-issued vehicle to conduct counter-surveillance and relayed sensitive law enforcement information and activity to Martinez to prevent the detection of four 1,000-pound marijuana loads from detection by law enforcement. Amaro was convicted of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute more than 4,000 pounds of marijuana in July, August, October, and November 2006. In exchange for his assistance, Amaro received bribe payments from Martinez ranging from a few hundred dollars to $1,000.

Both Martinez and Amaro were permitted to remain free on bond pending their sentencing hearing.

A third defendant charged for his alleged involvement in the extortion scheme is pending trial and is presumed innocent unless and until convicted through due process of law.

The investigation leading to the charges against Martinez and Amaro was conducted by special agents of the Laredo Resident Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Wright and Robert Johnson.