An illegal immigrant from Mexico made a vacant Washington, D.C., apartment into a marijuana stash house, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said Wednesday.
Eder Luciano Pacheco, 36, pleaded guilty to charges involving his drug operation and his possession of a firearm as an illegal immigrant, according to the DOJ. Authorities discovered 618.75 pounds of marijuana and a loaded semi-automatic handgun.
Authorities discovered the drug stash after raiding an apartment Pacheco occupied in Washington’s Southwest Waterfront neighborhood in May 2022 after receiving reports that someone was living there when it was supposed to be vacant.
Pacheco also informed them that there was another gun in a cabinet above the apartment’s refrigerator.
Authorities also found a FoodSaver vacuum sealer, indicating bulk marijuana packages were being produced in the apartment for distribution, according to the DOJ.
Maintaining a drug stash house can lead to a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $500,000, according to the DOJ. Additionally, Pacheco’s firearm charge for possession as an illegal immigrant can lead to up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Illegal immigration into the U.S. has spiked to record levels in recent years. Border Patrol encounters recently hit a high of 10,000 per day at the southern border in the days leading up to the end of Title 42, a Trump-era expulsion order, on the evening of May 11, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told CNN on Sunday.
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