Illegal Alien and Convicted Felon Sentenced to More than 15 Years in Prison for Trafficking Cocaine Across US-Mexico Border

CLEVELAND - A Mexican national has been sentenced to federal prison for illegally entering the United States and then trafficking kilogram-quantities of cocaine in Northeast Ohio.

Jaime Ortega-Urquidi, 63, was sentenced to 188 months (15 years and 6 months) in prison by U.S. District Judge John R. Adams after pleading guilty in November 2025 to the following charges:

• Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine, with Notice of Prior Serious Drug Felony Conviction; and
• Illegal Reentry of Alien Following Removal, with Notice of Prior Aggravated Felony Conviction.

According to court documents, on May 28, 2025, Lorain police officers conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle in which Ortega-Urquidi was a passenger. During the stop, a drug detection K-9 alerted to the odor of illegal drugs in the vehicle. Officers searched the vehicle and found cocaine weighing approximately two kilograms. Officers also seized more than $29,000 in cash. During further investigation into Ortega-Urquidi, law enforcement discovered he was part of an organization that smuggled kilograms of cocaine across the US-Mexico border. The organization then shipped the cocaine from Texas to Ohio, where Ortega-Urquidi distributed it to local drug dealers in the city of Lorain. Investigators also learned that Ortega-Urquidi was in the United States illegally at the time of his arrest. He was previously removed in October 2017, after serving a sentence for Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI Cleveland Division, the Lorain Police Department, the U.S. Border Patrol-Sandusky Bay Station, and the Elyria Police Department.

The prosecution was led by Assistant United States Attorney James Lewis for the Northern District of Ohio.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and to protect communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.