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A former US Customs and Border Protection officer has been sentenced to over a decade in federal prison after being convicted of collaborating with a Mexican cartel.

Getting into it: According to court records, Diego Bonillo was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to import controlled substances and multiple counts of drug smuggling. As part of a broader scheme with a Mexico-based drug trafficking organization, Bonillo used his official CBP position to allow vehicles loaded with fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin to cross the US-Mexico border without inspection. Over a period spanning from October 2023 to April 2024, Bonillo allowed at least 15 drug-laden vehicles to enter the country through border checkpoints, including at the San Ysidro, Otay Mesa, and Tecate ports of entry.

Bonillo communicated with cartel members using a second, unregistered phone that he kept hidden from law enforcement. He would send details about which inspection lanes he was assigned to, so traffickers could time their crossings precisely when he was on duty and able to wave them through without scrutiny. Prosecutors said that he was responsible for allowing at least 165 pounds of fentanyl, 25 pounds of methamphetamine, and over 2 pounds of heroin into the United States.

Federal investigators uncovered the scheme through a combination of surveillance, communication intercepts, and financial tracking. His second phone was eventually discovered and linked to messages coordinating with the traffickers. Additionally, Bonillo’s finances raised red flags, with unexplained cash used for international travel, luxury shopping, an attempted real estate purchase in Mexico, tickets to the Canelo vs. Munguia boxing match, and repeated visits to the Hong Kong Gentlemen’s Club in Tijuana.

In a statement, US Attorney Adam Gordon said Bonillo “weaponized his badge for personal profit,” adding that the officer funneled deadly narcotics into the country and put entire communities at risk. DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari called it a “betrayal” that endangered national security, while the FBI’s San Diego Field Office declared that Bonillo had “disgraced the badge” and violated his oath to protect the American people.