RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The son of a major drug cartel leader is moving forward with federal charges of gun smuggling.
Osiel Cardenas Jr., 29, is facing two charges of smuggling goods from the United States in the Southern District of Texas’s Brownsville court. Cardenas is accused of attempting to transport 10 firearms to Mexico in April 2021.
On Wednesday, Cardenas waived his presence at an arraignment scheduled for Feb. 10. This action will set forward a trial for Cardenas with hearings scheduled in March and the jury selection taking place on April 4, according to court documents.
The Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Harlingen department is leading this investigation along with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Cardenas is the son of Osiel Cárdenas Guillén, the former leader of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas, two of Mexico’s most notorious drug cartels. The senior Cardenas was sentenced to 25 years in U.S. federal prison in 2010 for actions relating to these cartels.
Cardenas Jr., meanwhile, has also spent time in federal prison. He was convicted of illegally possessing a firearm and impersonating a U.S. Marshal in August 2018 and sentenced to 27 months in prison. Cardenas Jr. was released in March 2020.
On Jan. 6, the Brownsville Police Department posted a release of Cardenas Jr.’s arrest for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. However, details on this charge have not been released at this time.
