San Diego
A Lancaster, Calif., man, arrested in Imperial County Saturday on suspicion of carrying in his pickup 1,070 pounds of cocaine, worth more than $70 million on the street, was arraigned Monday in federal court in San Diego, a Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman said.
Armando Martinez Cortez, 60, was booked into the downtown Metropolitan Correctional Center and charged with possessing narcotics with intent to distribute, DEA spokesman Ronald d’Ulisse said.
D’Ulisse said Cortez was stopped by an Imperial County sheriff’s deputy about 3:30 p.m. Saturday for speeding along California 86 near Salton City, which is about 80 miles northeast of San Diego.
The results of the arraignment were not available late Monday, but D’Ulisse said that, if Cortez is found guilty, he could face a 10-year-to-life sentence with no possibility of parole and a $2-million fine.
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