A fifth individual has been found guilty in a significant meth trafficking conspiracy in Minnesota, which is linked to the infamous Sinaloa Cartel from Mexico, as announced by federal prosecutors on Tuesday.
Eric Anthony Rodriguez, 47, has been convicted in U.S. District Court on charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, following a six-day trial presided over by Judge Susan R. Nelson.
Prosecutors have indicated that Rodriguez was involved with the “Diaz-Aguilar Drug Trafficking Organization,” which conducted operations throughout Minnesota from April 2024 to March 2025, Fox News reported.
Prosecutors have reported that the organization was responsible for transporting large quantities of meth, at times reaching hundreds of pounds, into the state. The organization was under the leadership of Erick Emilio Diaz-Aguilar, 33, who had previously entered a guilty plea. He was joined by co-defendants Juan Martin Elvira Jr., 36, Edward Gonzalez, 30, and Bruce Michael Orton, 44.
In a thorough investigation spanning nearly a year, law enforcement successfully confiscated approximately 60 pounds of methamphetamine, 1,500 fentanyl pills, and over $20,000 in cash. Law enforcement officials conducted raids on stash houses located in Columbia Heights, Hastings, and Rochester.
In November 2025, law enforcement officials apprehended Rodriguez during a planned traffic operation, seizing three pounds of methamphetamine from his vehicle. Prosecutors indicated that trial evidence revealed he had received numerous additional pounds intended for distribution.
Federal authorities have reported that the trafficking network is connected to the Sinaloa cartel, a Mexican transnational criminal organization historically associated with significant drug operations in the United States. Rodriguez is scheduled to receive his sentencing at a future date.
This has been a historic month for the DOJ and FBI.
FBI Director Kash Patel highlighted what he described as a record-setting first year at the helm of the bureau during an appearance on Fox News, citing major gains in capturing fugitives from the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list.
Patel appeared on “Hannity” after host Sean Hannity noted that the FBI has apprehended six of its Ten Most Wanted fugitives in just one year. Hannity compared this performance to the previous administration’s record of only capturing four fugitives from the list in four years.
Patel said the difference reflects a fundamental change in how the bureau operates.
He said the FBI has placed approximately 1,000 additional agents into the field to focus on violent crime and fugitive apprehension.
The FBI announced the milestone following the January arrest of Ten Most Wanted fugitive Alejandro Rosales Castillo.
Castillo is accused of the 2016 murder of 23-year-old Truc Quan Sandy Ly Le, whose body was found in a wooded area of Cabarrus County, North Carolina.
State charges were filed in Mecklenburg County in November 2016, including first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and larceny of a motor vehicle.
A federal arrest warrant was issued in February 2017 for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
He credited President Donald Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and international law enforcement partners for the successful operation.
Patel made headlines in late January when the FBI announced that nearly 50 members and associates of the Latin Kings street gang had been arrested as part of a sweeping, multistate operation aimed at disrupting gang-related crime, drug trafficking, and violence across the United States.
The effort, dubbed “Operation Broken Crown,” involved more than a dozen FBI field offices working with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement partners over three months, the bureau said.
Officials said agents seized more than a dozen firearms, nearly $200,000 in illicit funds, and over 10 kilograms of cocaine, fentanyl, and other narcotics during the operation, which began in October 2025.
Patel praised the operation’s results and said in a statement that the bureau will continue efforts to dismantle violent gangs and safeguard communities.
“Under President Trump’s and Attorney General Bondi’s leadership, this FBI is dismantling violent gang networks in America at a record clip — breaking their operations and saving lives in the process,” FBI Director Kash Patel said.
