Court bailiff charged with cocaine dealing, firearms trafficking

A Cameron County bailiff was arrested Friday after a five-month investigation revealed he was dealing cocaine and selling high power firearms to the Gulf Cartel, officials said.

Oscar Peña Jr., 26, of the 2700 block of Parkview Lane and a bailiff in Judge Daniel T. Robles’ County Court-at-law No. 3, was arrested Friday morning along with Sotero Sotelo, 35, of the 470 block of Linda Lane. Their charges ranged from organized criminal activity to possession of cocaine, Sheriff Omar Lucio said.

Sotelo told investigators he is a businessman and operated La Cueva, a drive-thru off Central Avenue.

“This operation was called Dirty Pig (and conducted) by the Special Investigative Unit. It started about five months ago,” Lucio said, adding that U.S. news/" class="autolink">Immigration and Customs Enforcement and FBI agents assisted in the investigation.

FBI spokesman Jorge Cisneros said Friday that he could not confirm his agency’s involvement in the investigation because he had just returned from an out-of-town trip.

“They had been working on this particular case for a while,” Lucio said. “This morning they served and conducted a high risk arrest and search warrant.” He would not say how the investigation came about.

The investigation indicated Peña and Sotelo were allegedly trafficking drugs, smuggling firearms and engaging in organized criminal activity, the sheriff said.

“What was confiscated this morning was 14 high-power assault rifles, five semi-automatic handguns, one sawed-off shotgun,” he said. “Also located were various magazine cartridges for the assault rifles as well as a large amount of ammunition.”

Sotelo was arrested Friday in downtown Brownsville, and led investigators to his home where six semi-automatic weapons, a bullet proof vest, a helmet, $3,000 in cash and over one kilo of cocaine were found, Lucio said.

Each rifle is worth between $800 to $1,000, he said.

The sheriff said the rifles and handguns found at the suspect’s homes do not belong to the county.

“This is coming from up state,” Lucio said. “The investigators had information that it was going on for some time and these weapons were being sent into Mexico and being traded for money or drugs.”

Bonds for each were set at $52,500. Peña and Sotelo were being held Friday afternoon at the Carrizalez-Rucker Detention Center, in Olmito. Peña was also charged with possession of a prohibited weapon after the sawed-off shotgun was less than 20 inches long.