OCALA, Florida — Three men, including 35-year-old Jose Carbajal of Palm Springs, California, have pleaded guilty to charges of retaliating against a government witness and conspiracy to retaliate, according to the United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe. Each faces up to 20 years in prison for each count, with sentencing dates yet to be determined.
Carbajal, previously sentenced to 40 years for drug and money laundering conspiracies, was in Seminole County Jail when he orchestrated an attack on a cooperating witness, identified as Witness 1. Carbajal, along with 21-year-old Edward Camacho of Winter Garden, Florida, and 41-year-old Jose Lugo of Kissimmee, Florida, assaulted Witness 1 on December 26, 2024, after the witness was mistakenly placed in the same jail unit. The attack involved punching, kicking, and using a jail telephone as a weapon, and ended when detention deputies intervened, according to court records…