NEW YORK -- An elected mayor from Mexico was charged in New York for smuggling hundreds of kilograms of cocaine into the U.S. over several years, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Drug Enforcement Agents and U.S. Marshals arrested Ruben Gil, the mayor of Izucar de Matamoros in Puebla, Mexico, for allegedly helping run the narcotics trafficking ring.
Gil was arrested as he tried to fly into Los Angeles but his name was on a watch list due to his alleged drug trafficking activity. Prosecutor said he had been helping run the drug ring for much of the last decade. Gil, 41, was elected mayor of Izucar de Puebla in 2007.
Investigators said Gil used tractor trailers to ship the drugs. DEA agents said they seized a drug shipment back in 2004 carrying 150 kilograms of cocaine. The truck had the name "Gil Moving and Storage" on it, according to court papers.
U.S. officials credited Mexican authorities with helping make the arrest. "The arrest of Ruben Gil ... is the result of extraordinary cooperation of international law enforcement partners," U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia said in a statement.
Gil was arrested in Los Angeles and flown to New York overnight. He is set to be arraigned Thursday in Manhattan federal court on the drug conspiracy charges. Gil does not yet have a defense attorney, according to court records and a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's office.
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