The Department of Justice reported earlier this week that a former U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer had been found guilty of receiving payments from organizations seeking to smuggle illegal immigrants and drugs across the southern border.
Leonard Darnell George was found guilty on Monday by a federal jury of three counts of bringing in specific aliens for financial gain, conspiracy to import controlled narcotics, and accepting payments from public officials.
Over a six-month period, George, who the DOJ claimed was employed by two different criminal organizations, permitted cars carrying illegal immigrants as well as vehicles carrying meth and other illegal narcotics to pass through his lane and enter the country.
Prosecutors and law enforcement officials concluded that during the course of the six months, George permitted the criminal organizations to make roughly 19 crossings.
Witnesses testified during the trial on how George would move the cars through the San Ysidro Port of Entry, his border crossing into San Diego, between late 2021 and mid-2022.
They stated in their testimony that he would communicate with drug trafficking group members while he was at work, informing them of the lane he was working in and giving them an hour to get in touch with him.
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When a car suspected of transporting drugs pulled into George’s lane in February 2022, he was forced to submit it to secondary inspection, where they found about 222 pounds of meth.
After that, George allowed a second car carrying more than 200 pounds of drugs to enter the country as it was following the vehicle that had been flagged.
The DOJ claimed that during the trial, George was paid $13,000 the following day for permitting the car to enter the border. He then utilized that money to buy a 2020 Cadillac CT5 for a member of the drug trafficking group as a Valentine’s Day gift, and he delivered the automobile to the recipient in Ensenada, Mexico.
To hide what he was permitting, he would often alter the names of the drivers using his lane or leave out any passengers.
During the trial, text conversations revealed that George had given the thieves permission to use his lane for $17,000 per car. According to the DOJ, one message verified that he was paid $68,000 for permitting four cars belonging to a single group to drive through his lane in June 2022.
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According to a witness, George would purchase jewelry, cars, and motorcycles with the money. According to the DOJ, he also often visited the Hong Kong Gentleman’s Club in Tijuana, spending roughly $5,000 there “showering” the dancers with gifts and money, including bottles of wine.
“With this verdict, the jury sent a clear message to anyone considering trading in their badge for cash,” U.S. Attorney Tara K. McGrath stated. “Abandoning the integrity of the uniform for the conspiracy of drug trafficking is a path to a criminal conviction.”
