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Kelly Thornton Category: Person Description: A Media Relations Director for the U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California. Page Sections: Article Index |
| Date | Article | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 3 July 2023 | Customs and Border Protection Officer Indicted for Receiving Bribes, Allowing Drug-laden Vehicles to Enter the U.S. According to the indictment and other public records, the defendants allegedly coordinated the smuggling of methamphetamine, fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin from Mexico with an ultimate destination of the United States. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California  |
| 13 July 2023 | Man Sentenced to 15 years for Organizing Smuggling Event that Resulted in 13 Deaths As detailed in pleadings filed prior to the sentencing hearing, Cruz Noguez was a coordinator of the event in which two SUVs – a GMC Yukon and a Ford Expedition – were modified by removing the seats in the passenger compartments so that undocumented migrants literally could be stacked on top of one another. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 6 October 2023 | Riverside County Man Sentenced to Five Years for Federal Firearm and Drug Charges After High-Speed Chase According to the government’s sentencing papers, San Diego police officers found the defendant in his car, slumped over and unconscious, with the keys in the ignition and the vehicle running. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California Topic: Interstate Highway System |
| 20 October 2023 | Woman Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking and Obstruction of Justice in So-Called “Blind Mule” Case After her arrest, as part of the planned cover story, Victoria Carmona claimed she was unaware of the hidden drugs and said she recently accepted a job offer on Facebook to pick up cash in the United States and transport it to Mexico. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 8 April 2024 | Woman Convicted by Federal Jury of Burning Down Local San Diego Business The audit revealed that during Carey Alice Hernandez’s tenure as bookkeeper and controller in charge of the company books and records, $744,621 went missing between January 2015 and March 2019. | Press Release (text &  photos)Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California Topics: Off Road Warehouse, Carey Alice Hernandez |
| 17 May 2024 | Drug Trafficker Who Used College-Age Drivers to Import Methamphetamine Sentenced to 12 Years Fernando Castro Bazan, a Los Angeles-based drug trafficker, was sentenced in federal court today to 12 years in prison for his leadership role in a drug trafficking organization that employed drivers as young as 18 years old to import large quantities of methamphetamine into the United States from Mexico in the gas tanks of rental cars. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 12 June 2024 | Customs and Border Protection Officer Convicted by Federal Jury of Receiving Bribes, Allowing Drug-Laden Vehicles to Enter the U.S. On the same day he received his bribe payment, George purchased a 2020 Cadillac CT5 for an associate of the drug trafficking organization as a gift. George delivered the Cadillac CT5 to the associate in Ensenada on Valentine’s Day. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 11 July 2024 | Leader of Major Migrant Smuggling Ring Pleads Guilty According to court documents, some of the smuggling events in the conspiracy resulted in high-speed chases and crashes, which placed the migrants, drivers, law enforcement, and members of the public at risk. This culminated in a tragic collision on December 25, 2021. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 11 October 2024 | Leader of Fatal Migrant Smuggling Conspiracy Sentenced to 10 Years When Border Patrol attempted to pull him over, Kevin Antonio Quevedo-Moncada fled into a nearby campground, swerving wildly and careening around a field at high speed before ramming a Border Patrol vehicle to escape. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 25 October 2024 | Customs and Border Protection Officer Sentenced for Receiving Bribes to Allow Drug-Laden Vehicles and Unauthorized Immigrants to Enter the U.S. Leonard Darnell George would notify members of a drug trafficking organization when he was at work, what lane he was on, and that they had one hour to reach his lane. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 3 April 2025 | Alien Smuggler Admits Role in Fatal Crash Following High-Speed Pursuit Within about one minute, Sergio Josue Palomera lost control of the car on State Route 905, and it rolled over. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 13 November 2025 | Former Customs and Border Protection Officer Sentenced for Allowing Drug-Laden Vehicles to Enter the U.S. Diego Bonillo admitted that as part of the conspiracy he allowed at least 75 kilograms of fentanyl, 11.7 kilograms of methamphetamine, and over 1 kilogram of heroin, into the United States. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |
| 18 November 2025 | Man Charged with Assaulting Federal Officer with his Car According to the complaint, agents approached the driver side window and shouted “Police, don't move!” multiple times. | Press Release (text) Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of California Byline: Kelly Thornton Dateline: San Diego, California |