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U.S. Department
of Justice
United States Attorney Richard B. Roper
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
CONTACT: KATHY COLVIN |
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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2007 WWW.USDOJ.GOV/USAO/TXN |
PHONE: (214)659-8600
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KIDNAPPER SENTENCED TO 28 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON FOR THE Bocanegra pled guilty on July 17, 2007, to conspiracy to commit kidnapping, kidnapping, use of interstate facilities to demand a ransom and using, carrying or brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. He was in the car with Gerardo Diaz when FBI agents shot and killed Diaz. According to documents filed in Court, on May 4, Salomon Bocanegra, Juan Jose Ornelas-Castro, Heberto Bocanegra, a/k/a “Christopher” and a/ka/ “Beto,” and Damarius Ornelas-Castro agreed to rob an individual they believed was distributing large quantities of drugs in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. They went to Esquivel’s residence on Devonshire Road in Richardson, armed with handguns, and when they arrived at the residence, they kidnapped Esquivel, at gunpoint in his front yard, and forced him into a vehicle, believing that they could collect a ransom of cash and drugs. Once inside the vehicle, Esquivel was restrained, shot and beaten by various defendants, and driven to a tire shop in Dallas, where he was held against his will. While he was being held, the defendants made numerous phone calls to Esquivel’s family members in the Republic of Mexico demanding cash and pound quantities of methamphetamine for his safe release. Early the following morning, the defendants moved Esquivel from the tire shop to a trailer located as 2324 Cedar Rock, in Dallas, and kept him there blindfolded, restrained and at gunpoint. He was beaten and forced to use a cell phone to call individuals to request that a ransom be paid for his release. The kidnapping victim, Carlos Moreno Esquivel, along with six other defendants were subsequently charged in a separate indictment with participating in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy during the time of the kidnapping. Esquivel is also set to be sentenced in January 2008. The case was investigated by the FBI, with task force officers from the Texas Department of Public Safety, Garland Police Department, Dallas Police Department, and Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Office of Inspector General. The Richardson Police Department co-investigated the case with the FBI. Immigration and Customs Enforcement also provided assistance in the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rick Calvert. ### |