Lucio Hernandez-Mora and Sandra Bejarano-Garcia, both Mexican nationals residing illegally in the United States, have been sentenced to federal prison for laundering over one million dollars in drug proceeds. Hernandez-Mora also received a sentence for possessing firearms as an illegal alien.
“Drug traffickers enrich themselves, and the narco-terrorist cartels that supply them, by spreading poison in our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Through the newly formed Homeland Security Task Force, the Department of Justice is employing every resource to identify, arrest and prosecute criminals who participate in the deadly drug trade. The sentences imposed on these illegal aliens who were entrusted with enormous amounts of cash and responsible for moving that money for cartel bosses send a strong message that anyone who supports drug trafficking will face significant punishment.”
Jae W. Chung, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division, commented: “This case highlights the importance of targeting the financial infrastructure that supports drug trafficking organizations. Laundering criminal proceeds allows these organizations to operate, recruit, and expand. Through close coordination with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, the DEA will continue to identify and dismantle the financial networks that enable these dangerous criminal operations.”
ATF Assistant Special Agent in Charge Ryan Todd stated: “This case underscores the critical importance of interagency collaboration in combating drug-related crimes. The partnership between the DEA and ATF has proven essential in dismantling the financial networks that support drug trafficking. Together, we will ensure that those who exploit our communities for profit face the full force of the law.”
Court records show that on December 9, 2024, Hernandez-Mora and Bejarano-Garcia delivered $674,905 in bulk-cash drug proceeds to co-conspirators in College Park, Georgia. On February 25, 2025, they delivered another $480,000 in Riverdale, Georgia. A search at their residence on April 1, 2025 uncovered an additional $217,810 along with two unlawfully purchased firearms.
Sandra Bejarano-Garcia was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Victoria M. Calvert to four years and three months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering on September 30, 2025.
Lucio Hernandez-Mora was sentenced on January 21, 2026 by Judge Calvert to three years and ten months imprisonment followed by two years supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and possession of firearms as an illegal alien.
The investigation involved cooperation among several agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Clayton County Police Department and others.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Austin Hall prosecuted this case.
These prosecutions are part of Operation Take Back America—a national initiative aimed at fighting illegal immigration and eliminating cartels—and fall under activities coordinated through Executive Order 14159’s Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF). The HSTF brings together multiple federal agencies such as ATF, CGIS, DEA, FBI among others as well as state and local partners with a focus on removing violent criminal aliens from within U.S borders.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia led prosecution efforts as part of its role as principal federal law enforcement agency serving north Georgia’s population across Atlanta suburbs into bordering states according to its official website. This office manages criminal prosecutions—including those related to terrorism or drug trafficking—in addition to civil matters involving national or international reach as outlined online.
