COLUMBUS, Ohio — Julio Ernesto Jimenez-Oyaga, an alleged member of a transnational criminal organization, made his initial appearance in a U.S. federal court on February 9, 2023. Jimenez-Oyaga was extradited to the United States and arrived in Columbus on the same day, before appearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Chelsea Vascura.
Jimenez-Oyaga is facing charges of conspiracy to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine with the intention of unlawfully importing it into the United States. A federal grand jury returned an indictment against him on April 30, 2019, and he was taken into custody by Colombian authorities in Medellin on June 10, 2021, at the request of the United States.
According to the indictment, Jimenez-Oyaga and others coordinated the planned delivery of multiple kilograms of cocaine from Colombia through Panama, with the intention of importing it into the United States. The cocaine was intercepted and seized with the assistance of Panamanian law enforcement authorities.
The investigation was conducted by the Columbus District Office of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Columbus Office of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF program is a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach aimed at identifying, disrupting, and dismantling the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States.
