VICTORIA, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A man described by federal prosecutors as a general with the Texas Chicano Brotherhood is headed to prison for his role in a cocaine conspiracy.
Tony “Klownman” Torres, 53 pleaded guilty Nov. 8, 2022, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge John D. Rainey ordered Torres to prison for 10 years to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release.
“Gangs like the Texas Chicano Brotherhood often rely on trafficking deadly narcotics to fund their operations and other illicit criminal activities,” Assistant Special Agent in Charge Mario Trevino of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Corpus Christi said.
The organization primarily operates in the Rio Grande Valley, according to the Department of Justice. Many members have been convicted of crimes that include murders, home invasions, kidnappings, and drug trafficking.
Torres was described as one of two generals who oversaw the group’s criminal activities in the “free world” after they were released from prison. He was found to have distributed cocaine in the Harlingen area as part of the overall conspiracy, prosecutors said.
Torres has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau Prisons facility.
He is the third high-ranking member of the gang to be sentenced in the case. In 2020, Judge Rainey sentenced Ricardo Garcia of Rio Grande City to a 20-months in prison. Rafael Diaz, also of Rio Grande City, received a 12-year sentence.
Garcia and Diaz were a major and captain, respectively, in the Texas Chicano Brotherhood organization, prosecutors said.
