A man has been sentenced to more than nine years in federal prison after being convicted of smuggling people, and drugs from Mexico into Santa Barbara County.
Prosecutors say Jorge Munoz-Munoz was a crew member on a panga boat which landed on the Gaviota Coast in 2021.
There were 14 people on board. Investigators say there were 11 passengers who paid $15,000 each to be smuggled into the United States. Authorities also recovered 45 pounds of methamphetamine.
The 27-year-old Ensenada, Mexico man was convicted of more than two dozen smuggling related charges. The two other members of the boat’s crew had already been convicted of charges stemming from the case.
