CHRISTIANSTED — A native of the Dominican Republic admitted in federal court to smuggling 1,388 pounds of cocaine by boat into United States waters.
Leandro De Los Santos, 33, of Santo Domingo, pleaded guilty before Magistrate Judge Emile A. Henderson, III, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine while on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, U.S. Attorney Delia L. Smith said.
According to court documents, on September 11, 2022, while on routine patrol south of
the Dominican Republic, a maritime patrol aircraft detected a go-fast vessel navigating on a
northerly course approximately 80 nautical miles south of Bani, Dominican Republic.
The U.S.S. Billings was dispatched to the area when crew members observed that the vessel had no flag flown, no registration numbers and no name painted on its hull.
The Dominican Republic Navy later advised that the vessel was not registered with their country. The vessel was therefore treated as one without nationality thereby subjecting it to laws of the United States.
Onboard the vessel, the U.S.S. Billings boarding team detained De Los Santos and another individual and located 18 bales of cocaine weighing approximately 630 kilograms.
A sentencing date for De Los Santos has been set by the Court for August 4, 2023, where he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The United States Coast Guard, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) are investigating this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan Rikhye prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.
OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.