A Mexican Drug Nightmare

Mexico’s drug war has taken over the lives of ordinary people in that country, making many fearful even to go to restaurants or other public places where kidnappings could happen. And you don’t even need to be involved in the drug trade to suffer consequences.

CNN recently told the story of one Mexico native who lived through a drug-related nightmare – and all he was doing was minding his own business and trying to better himself. Juan Andres, as CNN agreed to call him, traveled daily from his home in Ciudad Juarez to the University of Texas at El Paso. It was a quick three-and-a-half-mile commute that earned him a special pass to go quickly through customs. There were some hoops to jump through initially, but once Andres proved he wasn’t high-risk, he earned the coveted SENTRI pass. The special status was a time-saver for the married father of two, but it also made him a target to drug traffickers.

The morning of November 16, 2010, was a typical commute for Andres, who drove his 2007 Ford Focus to the Stanton Street Bridge border crossing as he'd done every day for years. And then it happened. US Border Patrol agents singled him out for a random search and discovered two black duffel bags filled with marijuana in the trunk of his car.

“It was like suddenly being in a nightmare,” Andres told CNN. “I [asked] God, 'Why did you allow something like this to happen?’”

He told the agents he had no idea how the drugs got there, but because there was no evidence that his trunk had been tampered with, he was arrested and detained. Andres was charged with drug possession with the intent to distribute and spent six months in various US jails awaiting trial. He refused to accept a plea deal because he knew he was innocent.

On May 10, 2011, Andres was found guilty of possession and intent to distribute marijuana. He faced up to three years in prison. If Andres had already had a criminal record, he could've been sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

So how did this happen?

Drug cartels are always looking for new ways to get product into the US, and they concocted a plan to take advantage of the SENTRI pass system and law-abiding citizens like Andres.

Fortunately, US law enforcement noticed a pattern in several drug smuggling cases and the case was dismissed against Andres just three days after he was sentenced. The federal investigation that followed proved that Andres was one of at least five so-called "blind mules" used by cartels to traffic drugs. Others included a fourth-grade teacher and a sports medicine doctor.

Despite being a free man with a cleared name, Andres is still haunted by his experience and the six months he spent behind bars, falsely accused.

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