A Kansas City, Kansas, man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role in an international drug trafficking ring, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in Kansas.
In April 2022, Jovanny Medina, 24, of Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.
According to court documents, Medina took part in a conspiracy to traffic illegal narcotics sourced from his family in Mexico in the Kansas City metro area. His primary role in the operation was to import and distribute multi-kilogram quantities of methamphetamine, collect drug debts, and transport bulk United States currency from Kansas City to Mexico.
“As long as drug smugglers infiltrate our borders and peddle poison into our communities, the Department of Justice will remain vigilant in arresting and prosecuting offenders with the deliberate intention of dismantling these criminal enterprises,” U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard said in a news release.
U.S. Attorney Slinkard commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration for their collaborative investigation and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheri Catania who prosecuted the case.
This prosecution was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location.