BATON ROUGE — Five people connected to a large-scale cocaine and heroin trafficking network based in East Baton Rouge Parish have each been sentenced by a federal judge, a release from Wednesday says.
One of the men, 49-year-old Francisco Palma, was initially arrested in 2019 after he was accused of buying cocaine from Mexico and selling it in Baton Rouge, New Orleans and other cities dating back to 2017. WBRZ previously reported that agents seized more than $250,000 in illegal drug proceeds, luxury vehicles, heroin, cocaine and marijuana, as well as thirteen firearms during the investigation.
Palma received 13 years in prison on conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and heroin, possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, unlawful travel in aid of a racketeering enterprise, unlawful use of communications facilities and money laundering charges…