Osiel Cardenas Jr. Sentenced to 10 months in Supermax

Lucio R. Borderland Beat- Republished from San Antonio Express

“Today is my father’s birthday,” Cardenas Jr. said in Spanish. “Instead of going to visit him like they do every year, (my family) is here to support me.”

Osiel Cardenas Jr., 23, the son of one of Mexico’s most notorious drug lords, was sentenced Monday to 10 months in federal prison for attempting to smuggle military-grade ammunition into Mexico on New Year’s Eve.

Cardenas Jr. is the son of Osiel Cardenas, 48, who was the former leader of the Gulf Cartel and is now incarcerated in the reputed Supermax prison in Colorado for his role in orchestrating drug cartel activities along the Texas-Mexico border.

Cardenas Jr., a U.S. citizen born in Texas but raised in Mexico, had faced a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison. He was also fined $10,000 and will serve three years of supervised release.

Still, U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen cautioned Cardenas Jr. against visiting Matamoros, Mexico, in the future.

“You’re at a crossroads … you need to decide which way you’re going to go,” Hanen told Cardenas Jr., also known as “Mini Osiel.” “If you follow down the same pathway as your father, you’re going to end up in the same place.”

Cardenas Jr. pleadedguilty in February to trying to sneak hundreds of rounds of bullets past U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Brownsville en route to Matamoros on Dec. 31, including 290 rounds of 9mm ammunition and 161 rounds of .223mm ammunition.

Authorities also found in his black 2015 Cadillac Escalade 29 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and a pair of .233mm rifle magazines, which are designated as defense articles on the U.S. Munitions List. Cardenas Jr. admitted to having more than 14 grams of marijuana concealed in his underwear.

His mother, Celia Cardenas, penned a handwritten letter in Spanish to the court, apologizing for the conduct of her son, whom she called inexperienced and immature.

Hanen appeared to sympathize with Cardenas Jr., describing him as smart, yet burdened with the legacy of his infamous father, the cartel capo and mastermind behind the ultraviolent Los Zetas, which later split from the Gulf Cartel and became its own criminal organization.

In a heartfelt plea for leniency, Cardenas Jr., who has spent the past several months in solitary confinement for his safety, asked that Hanen allow him to spend the day with his family, who was in the courtroom.

“Today is my father’s birthday,” Cardenas Jr. said in Spanish. “Instead of going to visit him like they do every year, (my family) is here to support me.”