California inmate sentenced in scheme to deliver drugs into prison by drone
Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California Michele Beckwith announced that 48-year-old Michael Ray Costa received a five-year prison term. Acosta is an inmate at Pleasant Valley State Prison near Coalinga in Fresno County.
Prosecutors said Acosta pled guilty to conspiring to distribute and posses with intent to distribute methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana. Acosta was one of five people charged in "Operation Night Drop", a multi-agency investigation targeting drone incursions over prisons.
According to court documents, Acosta used a contraband cellphone to coordinate multiple drone deliveries into the prison between May and August 2021. Four co-conspirators, identified as Joshua Gonzlez, Jose Oropeza Rosendo, Rosendo Ramirez and David Ramirez Jr., flew drones over the prisons and dropped packages behind prison walls.
Acosta and his associates would then recover the items for further distribution, prosecutors said. Items smuggled into the prison included methamphetamine, heroin, marijuana, cellphones, phone accessories and other items.
Prosecutors also announced that Oropeza is scheduled to be sentenced for his role in the scheme on July 28, while Ramirez is expected to plead guilty on the same day.
Meanwhile, the next court appearance for Gonzalez and Ramirez is scheduled for June 11.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNN
7 minutes ago
- CNN
5 things to know for July 28: Gaza, Tariffs, Walmart attack, Missing mom and child, Pets
A federal judge has dismissed a Trump administration lawsuit against Chicago's 'sanctuary' laws. The suit claimed that these local statutes 'thwart' federal efforts to enforce immigration laws. However, Judge Lindsay Jenkins said the US lacked standing to sue. Similar suits have been filed against Los Angeles, New York City, Denver and four cities in New Jersey. Here's what else you need to know to get up to speed and on with your day. An internal US government review found no evidence of widespread theft by Hamas of US-funded humanitarian aid in Gaza. The analysis, conducted by the US Agency for International Development, contradicts the State Department's claims that were used to justify backing the Gaza Humanitarian Fund, a controversial organization that took over aid distribution in the enclave. According to the Palestinian Health Ministry and the UN, more than 1,000 people have been killed by Israeli forces as they sought aid, with 60% killed while trying to reach GHF sites. Thousands of Palestinians are suffering from malnutrition and more than a dozen people starved to death last week amid Israel's humanitarian blockade. Even doctors and nurses are collapsing from hunger and exhaustion as they try to administer help. The US and the European Union have managed to avoid an economically crippling trade war. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen shook hands in Scotland on Sunday after agreeing on the framework for a trade deal between two of the world's biggest economies. The agreement sets a 15% tariff on most European goods entering the US, which is higher than the 10% tariff Trump put in place on April 2 and significantly higher than the average of around 1.2% from before Trump's presidency. Yet it's lower than the 50% tariff Trump threatened in May when trade talks were stymied. Trump backed off that threat after speaking with von der Leyen, who called him to say the EU would commit to moving 'swiftly and decisively.' Police in Grand Traverse, Michigan, are praising bystanders who cornered the suspect in a violent stabbing attack. Bradford James Gille, 42, entered a Walmart on Saturday afternoon, waited inside for 35 minutes, then allegedly began stabbing random strangers with a foldable knife, authorities said. As the suspect fled into the parking lot, several bystanders gave chase, including an unarmed former Marine named Matt Kolakowski and his brother-in-law, Chris O'Brien. After another bystander, also a former Marine, pulled out his gun, the suspect dropped the knife. That's when Kolakowski subdued the attacker and held him until police arrived. 'I just turned into somebody that I haven't been in a long time and just stayed on top of him until the deputy ran up and jumped on top of him with a rifle in his face, and I helped the deputy arrest him,' Kolakowski said. All 11 victims – who are between the ages of 29 and 84 – are expected to survive. A California mother and her 8-month-old daughter are missing and haven't been seen for nearly two weeks. Family, friends and authorities are asking for the public's help in finding Whisper Owen, 36, and her infant daughter Sandra McCarty. Owen, who is also the mother of three other children, is described as 5'6', 145 lbs., with blue eyes and brown hair. Sandra is 1'10', 17 lbs., with green eyes and brown hair. On July 15, the pair left Fresno to return to their home near Sacramento. A traffic camera last captured their vehicle — a silver 2006 Chevrolet Trailblazer, license plate number 9LKH008, with damage to its driver's side headlight — shortly after 8 p.m. that night in Atwater. 'I'm desperate to find my daughter and her baby,' Owen's mother, Vickie Torres, told CNN. 'It's like she vanished into thin air.' Animal rescues and shelters across the US are reporting sharp increases in surrendered pets. Several of those organizations have told CNN that financial hardship is at the root of those owners' decisions. The cost of owning a pet — food, toys, grooming, vet visits, etc. — has increased in recent years. Some tariff-sensitive goods are expected to be even pricier in the months to come. Many pet owners are also facing a deterioration in financial stability, including the rising cost of living, debt burdens, an unexpected (human or animal) medical event or a job loss. 'It just breaks us to see people cry that they have to give up their animal because they have to move somewhere that's more affordable, and that place that's more affordable for them doesn't allow animals,' said Megan Larson, intake manager at Ruff Start Rescue in Minnesota. 'This is a very devastating decision that these people are forced to make. People don't want to do this.' GET '5 THINGS' IN YOUR INBOX If your day doesn't start until you're up to speed on the latest headlines, then let us introduce you to your new favorite morning fix. Sign up here for the '5 Things' newsletter. A new tax law limits how much itemizers may deduct and expands the amount non-itemizers may claim. The building-sized object initially appeared to be on a potential collision course with Earth. Now it may have a new target. 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' defeated a DC superhero to finish No. 1 at the box office over the weekend. The lucky fans who attended her farewell show in Las Vegas on Saturday night were treated to a starry lineup of surprise guests. The actress appeared in a new ad for the tech firm whose ex-CEO and HR chief were caught embracing on the 'kiss cam' at a Coldplay concert. Tom Lehrer, song satirist and mathematician, dies at 97Lehrer lampooned marriage, politics, racism and the Cold War in song, and was even nominated for a Grammy Award for best comedy performance (musical). However, he later abandoned his music career to teach math at Harvard and other universities. 15,000That's how many animals have been killed by a toxic algal bloom on South Australia's coastline. Fueled by a marine heat wave, the bloom has turned once-colorful ecosystems filled with thriving marine life into underwater graveyards. 'This is not about politics or borders or anything like that. It's about people helping people, and it's a community helping another community.' — Mexican firefighter Jorge Fuentes Fuentes is a member of the rescue group Fundación 911, which was one of the earliest first responders to the devastating flash floods in central Texas earlier this month. 🌤️ Check your local forecast to see what you can expect. That's why NASA and its international partners are developing a new way to measure time in space. Today's edition of 5 Things AM was edited and produced by CNN's Andrew Torgan.
CNN
7 minutes ago
- CNN
Scholar on what Trump's allegation against Obama says about his state of mind
Distinguished fellow and former director at Chatham House Robin Niblett joins 'Early Start' to discuss the latest in US politics, including President Donald Trump's attempts to deflect questions surrounding Jeffrey Epstein.
Bloomberg
7 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
The EU's Monster Energy Deal With Trump Looks Hard to Achieve
The European Union's promise to buy $750 billion of American energy imports over three years was pivotal to securing a trade deal with President Donald Trump, but it's a pledge it will struggle to keep. The deal would require annual purchases of $250 billion of natural gas, oil and nuclear technology, including small modular reactors. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc's estimates were based on the existing plan to shift away from remaining Russian fossil fuel supplies and purchasing 'more affordable and better' liquefied natural gas from US producers.
