Former CBP officer connected to Mexican drug cartel sentenced to serve 10 years in prison

A former U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer connected to the Mexican drug cartel La Linea was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison on drug trafficking and bribery charges, according to court records.

A federal judge sentenced Manuel Perez, Jr., 33, on March 2 to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to possess narcotics with intent to distribute and bribery of public officials, the El Paso Times reported Monday. Perez was also sentenced to five years in prison on one count of conspiracy to defraud the U.S., but he will serve the sentences concurrently. After his prison term is complete, he will serve five years of supervised release.

He pleaded guilty to the charges in October, and his plea agreement included the dismissal of six other charges, including bribery, human smuggling and drug charges.

On Sunday, a forfeiture judgment was filed, which orders Perez to forfeit items to the U.S. government that were used in or obtained through the drug and human smuggling scheme. The items Perez was ordered to forfeit include a black massage chair, jewelry, a Rolex watch, and about $3,880.

According to court documents and U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas officials, Perez was involved in the drug and human smuggling scheme from November 2019 until his arrest in February 2025.

Perez allowed vehicles driven by illegal immigrants to illegally cross into the U.S. at the Paso Del Norte international bridge in Downtown El Paso. He told investigators that he was being paid $2,500 for each illegal immigrant he allowed to pass, a CBP Office of Professional Responsibility special agent testified at a detention hearing in February 2025.

Federal prosecutors said that Perez may have been paid as much as $400,000 in a border illegal immigrant smuggling scheme dating to December 2023.

He was also involved in a conspiracy to smuggle more than five kilos of cocaine that was distributed in Louisiana, North Carolina, Texas, and other places. Perez told investigators that a smuggler had already paid him $20,000 for what he said were seven kilos of cocaine. The agent testified that Perez added that the smuggler had a drug debt with him for the rest of the money.