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Two UPS employees were among five people arrested in a multimillion cocaine trafficking scheme. Orlando Candelario Almanza, 49, and Fidencio Salinas Jr., 51, were accused of knowingly transporting the illegal drugs through the company's packages.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas said that Javier Enrique Mendoza, 48, allegedly supplied the cocaine to Enrique Bernardo Gamez, 45, who held it at his house until it was shipped. Prosecutors said that Jose Felipe Lozano, 58, would create fake labels for the packages and deliver them to Almanza and Salinas.
Authorities said they seized over 130 pounds of cocaine that the five men allegedly trafficked from March 24, 2022, to October 3, 2022.
The men were charged with conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. If convicted, they face life in prison and up to $10 million in fines.
"We are aware of the incident involving two UPS employees, and we're cooperating with the investigation," UPS said in a statement to USA TODAY. "As this is an ongoing investigation, we are not able to make additional comments at this time."