A man with connections to what police described as a large-scale drug-trafficking organization was sentenced to probation Monday.
Pima County Superior Court Judge Christopher Browning sentenced Gerardo Guerena to four years’ probation. Guerena, 26, pleaded guilty to attempted money laundering.
“This was a pretty large criminal enterprise that existed in this family,” said Deputy Pima County Attorney Jennifer Copenhaver-Celi.
Court documents describe that enterprise as one involved in the importation, storage and bulk sale of large quantities of marijuana.
Estimates of the enterprise’s sales top 10,500 pounds of marijuana at a profit of nearly $5 million.
Searches of Guerena family homes turned up numerous expensive automobiles and tens of thousands of dollars in cash.
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Court documents noted the cash and cars appeared to be out of place as few in the family had incomes that could account for the items.
Defense attorney Stanton Bloom said Guerena’s involvement in the enterprise was minimal.
“His involvement was that he got some money from his brother and bought some cars and sold them,” Bloom said.
Despite fleeing to Mexico for three years after the investigation began, Bloom said his client had no criminal past and voluntarily surrendered himself to American authorities.
Guerena’s brother, Jose Guerena, was shot and killed during a now infamous SWAT raid on his home on the far southwest side in May 2011.
Critics of the deadly raid accused police of using excessive force, having fired more than 70 times inside Jose Guerena’s home and hitting him 22 times.
Pima County and other local governments whose officers were part of the SWAT team agreed to pay Jose Guerena’s widow a $3.4 million settlement rather than fight the civil claim in court.
Speaking through a translator at Monday’s sentencing, Gerardo Guerena said he hoped to have a second chance to be with his family.
