SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — Two brothers from Salt Lake County have been sentenced to a combined 16 years in prison for leading a large drug trafficking organization. Mountazar Altalibi, 36, and Jaafar Altalibi, 44, were sentenced to 96 months each for distributing Alpha-Pyrrolidinohexanophenone, commonly known as “bath salts,” and for conspiracy to commit money laundering.
The sentences, handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Ted Stewart, follow the brothers’ guilty pleas to the charges. The Altalibi brothers operated their drug trafficking network out of two Utah businesses, generating hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to court documents. In addition to prison time, they were ordered to forfeit millions in assets, including properties, vehicles, and jewelry.
From May 2020 to August 2022, the brothers imported “bath salts” from a foreign supplier and distributed them through a network of coconspirators, many of whom have already been sentenced. The brothers also admitted to laundering drug proceeds to finance their lifestyle and business operations, including Jaafar’s business, Smokers Haven…