SHERMAN, Texas — A Guatemalan national and former mayor has been sentenced to more than 27 years in federal prison for his role in a large-scale international drug trafficking operation, officials said.
Crysthian Omar Escobar-Angel, 48, who previously served as mayor of El Rodeo in the Escuintla Department of Guatemala, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture and distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine knowing it would be unlawfully imported into the United States. He was sentenced to 327 months in federal prison on April 7, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant.
According to court records, federal agents began investigating the organization in 2015. Authorities said the operation used a complex network to move multi-ton quantities of cocaine from Colombia through Central America and into the United States.
Prosecutors identified Escobar Angel as overseeing a portion of the trafficking activity in Guatemala. He was indicted in the Eastern District of Texas in 2019.
Evidence presented in court showed Escobar Angel was involved in threats of violence tied to the organization’s operations.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
