Delhi man pleads guilty to smuggling drug money into Mexico

A 32-year-old Delhi man has pleaded guilty to conspiring to smuggle drug money into Mexico, the U.S. Justice Department announced Tuesday.

Arnulfo Huerta-Cornejo entered his plea Friday before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill.

Authoities said Huerta-Cornejo was involved with the cultivation of marijuana on federal lands from March 2014 to August 2015.

“During that time, he accumulated approximately $16,000 cash from the sale of marijuana, hid that cash in a vehicle, and arranged to have the cash smuggled into Mexico,” U.S. Attorney Phillip Talbert said in a statement.

Federal regulations require reporting when $10,000 or more in cash is taken out of the United States.

Huerta-Cornejo faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced May 22.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Forest Service, the Madera County Sheriff’s Department and the Merced County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Rooney.

This story was originally published February 21, 2017 at 4:47 PM with the headline "Delhi man pleads guilty to smuggling drug money into Mexico."