Mexican Citizen Residing in Johnson City Sentenced on Cocaine and Firearms Charges

GREENEVILLE, TN—On November 8, 2012, the Honorable Leon Jordan, U.S. District Judge, sentenced Benito Gonzalez, a.k.a. Crispy, 27, of Johnson City, Tennessee, to serve 120 months in federal prison for his role in multiple cocaine and firearms offenses.

During October and November 2011, co-defendant Raul Alfaro, 56, also of Johnson City, sold cocaine to an individual working on the behalf of law enforcement on multiple occasions. He also offered to sell the individual a variety of firearms, including an AK-47 assault rifle. In order to show the weapons he had for sale, Alfaro took pictures of the AK-47, a. 380 pistol, a .357 magnum, a 9mm pistol, and a shotgun and texted them to this individual. In November 2011, Alfaro met the individual again and sold him the .357 revolver. During this recorded transaction, Alfaro said that he and his supplier, Benito Gonzalez, would be ready to sell nine to 12 ounces of cocaine in about a week.

In November 2011, after a recorded drug transaction, law enforcement agents searched Alfaro’s vehicle, which was occupied by Alfaro and Gonzalez, and found approximately 10 ounces of cocaine, digital scales, the 9mm pistol Alfaro had previously offered to sell, and a magazine with six rounds of ammunition. Search warrants were subsequently executed at the residences of Alfaro and Gonzalez. Agents located and seized six firearms and close to 400 rounds of ammunition at Alfaro’s residence. Agents located and seized over $20,000 in U.S. currency, a .25 caliber handgun, ammunition, approximately 45 grams of cocaine, and digital scales at Gonzalez’s residence. Alfaro was previously sentenced to serve 120 months in federal prison.

U.S. Attorney William C. Killian stated, “The arrests and convictions in this case send a powerful message that drug and firearm trafficking will be aggressively investigated and prosecuted in the Eastern District of Tennessee.”

Law enforcement agencies participating in the investigation which led to the indictment and subsequent convictions of Alfaro and Gonzalez include the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the First Judicial Drug Task Force, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the Third Judicial Drug Task Force, the Fourth Judicial Drug Task Force, the Hamblen County Sheriff’s Office, the Johnson City Police Department, and the Elizabethton Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Taylor represented the United States.