Mexican Cartel Queen Pleads Guilty on Drug Charges; Faces Imprisonment (PHOTO)
A Mexican cartel "queen" is likely to be imprisoned after pleading guilty in Miami on a number of drug charges.
The so-called Mexican cartel queen, Sandra Avila Beltran, a former go-between for Mexico's Sinaloa cartel and Colombia's Norte Valle cartel, has pleaded guilty to being an accessory in a major drug trafficking operation.
She has admitted to working in the cartel along with her boyfriend at the time, included Juan Diego Espinosa Ramirez.
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Beltran has become known as the "Queen of the Pacific," but now she has admitted to helping Espinosa as he went on the run between 2002 and 2004.
Court documents have reportedly stated: "Between approximately 2002 and 2004, Avila-Beltran provided financial assistance for travel, lodging and other expenses to [Espinosa] with the intention of preventing or hindering his arrest for drug-trafficking crimes."
Beltran is alleged to have gained a dominant role in the Sinaloa cartel, and also had influence over ocean supply routes.
Beltran has had a well publicized romantic relationship with the Colombian drug leader, and has been glamorized to an extent by media coverage. She has been said to have led a rich lifestyle usually reserved for celebrities and movie stars.
If convicted she faces a life sentence, but is expected to receive a lesser sentence and six years will be deducted for time she already served in a Mexican prison before being extradited in August.
"Both sides felt the charge of accessory after the fact would be reflective of a fair and just result," Avila's attorney, Howard Schumacher, told The Miami Herald.
Beltran faces up to 15 years in prison and will be sentenced on July 25.
