MIDLAND (November 21, 2012)—Long-haul trucker Rigoberto Marquez, 37, of Odessa, has from West Texas has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from an investigation of a multistate drug-transporting ring with ties to Mexico.
Marquez pleaded guilty Tuesday afternoon to conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
No sentencing date was immediately set.
Marquez faces as much as 10 years in prison
In mid-2011 Marquez tried to recruit another Texas driver to transport cocaine from Arizona to Ohio, and then return money from the sales to Arizona, authorities said.
Prosecutors say the other trucker became an FBI informant.
On Nov. 18, 2011, Kentucky State Police near Elizabethtown, Ky., confiscated about $307,000 in drug money hidden in the truck Marquez was driving from Columbus, Ohio, authorities said.
The cash has been forfeited.
